Courtesy Grand County Sheriff’s Office
Grand County officials are reminding people to flush only toilet paper and personal waste down their toilets.
With panic buying related to the novel coronavirus outbreak reducing access to toilet paper, officials are asking that locals do not flush paper towels, wet wipes, napkins, tissues and other objects that may be used as a substitute. Only toilet paper is designed to be flushed and not cause a sewer mainline or service line blockages.
Sewer collection systems have a hard time handling inappropriately flushed items, and objects like paper towels and wet wipes can cause sewer back ups, often leading to thousands of dollars in damage.
If folks are “forced to get creative in the bathroom tissue product department,” officials ask that they use a trashcan for disposal.
Local sewer districts are being proactive in anticipation of the possible increase of inappropriately flushed materials and will be spending more time and money in sewer main jet cleaning operations, manhole spot checks and CCTV inspections.