A ruptured sewer line pumping raw wastewater into Silver Creek in northwest Davenport was under repair Tuesday by public works crews.

The pipe  — which broke apart at a joint due to significant soil erosion of the creek bank near the 3800 block of West Kimberly Road — has been leaking since Sunday afternoon, according to neighbors and city officials.

June Weller, who lives on nearby Linwood Avenue, said her son-in-law, Tim Albrecht, made the unsavory discovery while mowing Sunday afternoon.

“He noticed a high rate of water coming out of a pipe and that the creek (which runs near the back of his property) was high,” she said. “There was toilet paper and baby wipes and everything else in there. It smelled terrible.”

Dennis Ryan, interim public works director, said the rate of flow is about 200 to 300 gallons per minute into the creek. The city reported the spill Sunday to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Crews, which struggled to get access to the leak because the creek runs mostly through private property, will lift the pipe, re-connect the ruptured joint and put rock underneath to stabilize it. Ryan said there is concern that future leaks may occur due to soil erosion, but there is little the city can do to stop it, due to property issues.

Iowa American Water also was notified of the leak and has taken precautions, although heavy dilution of the waste makes it unlikely water supplies could be contaminated, said Lisa Reisen, the company’s communications manager. Iowa American’s water intake pipes in the Mississippi River are approximately 15 miles from the leaking sewer pipe.

As a precaution, the company is adding chlorine three times rather than the usual two times during treatment. In addition, chlorine is being added at the inflow pipe.

“This is a multi-level disinfection process,” Reisen said. “The water is safe and will continue to meet high standards.”

Iowa American has been monitoring river water for waste in the wake of heavy rains the past few weeks and has seen fluctuating levels, Reisen said.

Ryan said the city’s goal was to have the leak fixed by the end of the day Tuesday.

The Iowa DNR did not ask the city to issue notifications to nearby residents or take other actions beyond attempting to fix the leak, Ryan said.