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Raw Sewage Ends Up In Some Millbrae Homes During El Niño Storms

MILLBRAE (KPIX 5) – Recent storms have left behind quite a stench on a street in Millbrae, after raw sewage poured into some homes.

Along El Bonito Drive, the suburban quiet is punctuated only by the sound of drying fans.

On Saturday, a crew was working on the street's main sewer line, but may have failed it to cap it. That's when the El Niño downpours began.

"I heard bubbling noises coming from the bathroom," said Jason Chen, whose downstairs was flooded.

The downstairs of Harry Herpe's home was also flooded. "It was just cascading out, maybe an inch high, just flowing. It was a wild river," Herpe recalled.

At Herpe's home, raw sewage was flowing through his basement, his office and into the garage, covering piles of memories in filth.

"Memorabilia, photos, our kids' stuff, our grandkids stuff, a little bit of everything," Herpe told KPIX 5.

Herpe said his insurance company is covering the cleanup and repairs. "State Farm said you are covered, because whatever the water touches and damages you're covered for," he said. "So, I can sleep well tonight."

Across El Bonito, the home Chen shares with his wife and two daughters is unlivable.

"It was pretty, pretty gross. There was literally sewage all on my floor, master bathroom, the guest bathroom, the hallway bath, downstairs to the garage," Chen told KPIX 5.

But Chen may not be as lucky in cleanup and repairs as his neighbor. "This morning, my adjuster told me that our policy didn't cover this kind of damage," he said, because his sewer line that backed up, but the city of Millbrae's.

The estimate to repair his home is $100,000.

"Who the hell is going to pay for this?" Chen said.

Homeowners may be able to make a deal with the city to help recover some of the cost of cleanup.

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