This is off topic, but I need help/advice.

[65BelvedereII]

Well it has started again. Three weeks ago we start getting a gasoline smell in the bathroom anytime the in rains or water is running(sinks, toilet). This has going on for the last two and a half weeks. My first thought was that it was coming form my yard art. We called the fire dept out and they took readings. They said that they didn't pick anything up, but they could smell it. A couple days later it gets real bad, so we call the fire dept. out again. This time they get some readings coming form our drains. They told they called the city wastewater dept to come out and check it out and find the source. Since we have a 1 1/2 year old they tell us not to stay at the house. Granted this is at 10:30 p.m.. We were told to wait and city what the city crew said and then find somewhere to stay. We waited until 12:30, no city crew, so we leave. I miss work the nest to figure this out. Get the run around from the city all day. Finally get ahold of the head of public works and he tells me that the guy cam out at 11:00 and could not find a sewer gas smell in the main drain a half block away so he went home. This guy promises to follow up and get something done. The next day after work I stop at the gas station 2 blocks south of me and the Fire dept and City crews have all the manholes off in the parking lot. I follow them around for a while like an asshole and they finally find a fuel filter on a main pump leaking. Problem fixed, sort of. I have live here for 10 years and have always had problems with the sewers. First the gas station across the street from this one had tanks leaking and lost close to 2,000 gallons in the drains. We literally had gasoline coming up in our drains(wish I had that now at $3.00 a gallon). That guy conventally went bankrupt. We were forced to leave the house for a week then. At that time my daughter was 2. Then after that the city's raw sewage would start coming up in my back yard through the clean out. I have pictures of the **** fountain in my back yard. The city came out 3 times and cleaned the toilet paper/**** out of my yard and put in a backflow preventer. Problem solved, sort of. For the next 5 years no problems other than if it rains we can't flusht the toilets or drain the sinks. I refuse to let the kids play in the back yard because of the sewage that was in there. I'm ready to move now. I need to get my kids into a healthy home. I am having a hard time finding a lawyer that wants to challenge the city on the issue of the drains. What would you guys do? Anyone know a lawyer in the Tulsa area that will take this on? Sorry for the long thread I am just sick of it now.

[Mkelcy]

Have you talked to your neighbors to see if they also have problems. The larger the number of people who are affected, the greater the potential damages, the more likely you are to find a lawyer to take the case.

Alternatively, you might see if the legal clinic at the University of Tulsa College of Law might take the case:

Boesche Legal Clinic
407 S. Florence Ave, Tulsa, OK 74104
phone: 918-631-5799 fax: 918-631-5798

[65BelvedereII]

I'm the only one. Lowest house in the area. Thanks I'll check into the clinic!

[Slick]

ugh....the lowest house in the area..I know that situation, my rental property next door to me has that same famous tag. I'm the first to know of a sewer problem, it backs up into my basement sink, first time it happened it backed up the second floor bathroom which overflowed down onto the brand new kitchen and trashed the ceiling (which was so new I literally hadn't paid for it yet, got the contractors bill the day it was trashed). Good luck fighting it, my township was very good and honest with me about the whole thing but there are laws to keep them from being liable for stuff like this, I had a long and heated discussion with their insurance company about it, the township didn't even know they weren't liable for this stuff until that situation. It gets worse if anything weird is happening when it's raining like you said, or during any kind of weather, then they get to use the "act of god" line and all bets are really off....that sewer could flow your house away and they aren't responsible for it That is all info gathered within the last year here in PA, hopefully things are different down there, good luck with it. Oh and you may want to put your own pvc ball valve on your sewer line, if you notice something going on just shut that off and let them figure it out, it will at least keep you from having half the towns sewer in your basement.

[71Nova]

That really stinks. (literally) If that kept hapening to me I would sell the house and move. I believe that's the only thing you could do to fix the problem. Sucks when that stuff happens to good people.

[Shortrusty]

Contact your agency on the State level, like Department of Health and Environmental Control, explain the contaminate problems.
In my state, these people are serious about issues like your having.

[65BelvedereII]

Thanks everyone I think we have the issues worked out. The city has some funding in place to buy out some house that are in problem areas. They are either going to try to buy me out or do some major rework around me and in my yard if they can't get enough to buy me out. I appreciate everyones suggestions.