Poop Drones Are Keeping Sewers Running So Humans Don’t Have to

On the morning of Christmas Eve 2016, residents of a house in Fraser, Michigan heard a curious pop, pop, popping sound coming from their walls. After initially dismissing it as melting snow falling from the roof, they soon realised the truth: the noise was the result of bricks being squeezed out of place as their home slowly crumpled into a sinkhole. The house and several nearby were evacuated as authorities assessed the situation and determined its cause: a collapsed sewer interceptor, threatening several homes and a long stretch of Fraser’s busy 15 Mile Road. It was hardly the start to the festive season anyone would wish for. “This was quite the impact to our system and community,” says Vince Astorino. As Operations Director at the Macomb County Public Works Office, he’s responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the county’s wastewater infrastructure, including some 68 miles of sewer lines. “An 11-foot diameter sewer, approximately 70-feet deep, experienced a failure whic ... Read full article.