Vandalism blamed for 4,300-gallon Gwinnett sewage spill

A spill that sent more than 4,300 gallons of sewage into a Gwinnett County stream this week was caused by vandalism, officials said.

The spill was reported around 8:40 a.m. Wednesday at a manhole near 190 Hebron Church Road in Dacula, according to the Department of Water Resources. It took nearly an hour to contain and about 4,320 gallons of sewage flowed into "an unnamed tributary of Hopkins Creek."

"The manhole lid had been removed and yard debris/brush were dumped into the sewerage system, causing a blockage and resulting in the spill," water resources spokeswoman Karen Shields wrote in an email.