WAVERLY, Ohio — Raw sewage pooled on the ground, filled a pond, and killed more than 30 fish near a Howard Road property in Waverly — and Pike County failed to notify the Ohio EPA within the legally required 24-hour window, according to a notice of violation issued by the agency.
The Ohio EPA Division of Surface Water conducted a complaint inspection on March 11, 2026 after receiving reports of a sanitary sewer overflow in the 1000 block of Howard Road in Waverly. What inspectors found when they arrived was serious.
Raw sewage had spread across the ground, into a pond, and into a drainage ditch in the area. The Ohio EPA said they observed more than 30 dead fish in the pond. According to the notice, the overflow had originally occurred in February 2026 — meaning the sewage had been present for weeks before the inspection took place.
The violation cited by Ohio EPA was not just the overflow itself. Pike County failed to notify the agency within 24 hours of learning of the sanitary sewer overflow as required under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 6111 and the terms of the county’s NPDES permit. A required five-day follow-up report was also not submitted on time.
The Ohio EPA directed the county to properly report future overflows within 24 hours, clean up all impacted areas, and apply lime to affected ground.
On March 13, Ohio EPA received the five-day follow-up report. On March 16, the agency received photographs documenting the cleanup of the sewage and dead fish. On April 2, Ohio EPA received disposal receipts confirming the waste had been properly handled.
The agency has since declared the violation resolved.