Copyright 1999 Albuquerque Journal Albuquerque Journal

July 10, 1999, Saturday

SECTION: Metropolitan; Pg. E2

LENGTH: 195 words

HEADLINE: Rio Rancho Sewage Spills During Y2K Test

BODY: METRO WATCH

RIO RANCHO -- An electrical equipment failure sent up to 5,000 gallons of sewage spilling into an arroyo in Rio Rancho this week as workers ran a Y2K test of the system.

Sewage flowed for less than 30 minutes Wednesday into the Los Montoyas arroyo east of N.M. 528, said Kurt Vollbrecht, spokesman for the state Groundwater Quality Bureau. Sewage flowed about 900 feet through the arroyo before soaking into the sand. Utility workers retrieved about 2,000 gallons of it with a vacuum machine.

The spill is the 13th Rio Rancho has reported since May 1998. Vollbrecht has said the frequency of sewage spills in Rio Rancho is the worst in the state.

Rio Rancho utility workers Wednesday tested a backup electrical system for a sewage lift station as part of a search for problems with Y2K computer glitches, which could cause some computers to fail around Jan. 1, 2000.

They successfully operated the lift station using a backup generator, Vollbrecht said. But an electrical fuse failed when workers switched back to primary power at 2:40 p.m.

Utility workers plan to keep a portable generator available during future Y2K tests, he said.

-- Daren Henderson (TryChange@aol.com), July 13, 1999