HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — A sewage leak forced the closure of a section of the Virginia Capital Trail on Monday, disrupting the plans of walkers, runners and cyclists in the Richmond area.
Utility crews blocked off a stretch of the popular trail just east of Rocketts Landing to address the leak, which was reported near the Vulcan Materials Company off Old Osborne Turnpike.
Several trail users contacted CBS 6 reporting they had seen raw sewage leaking down the trail earlier in the day.
"Generally speaking, I feel like Richmond seems to have a lot of piping and utility issues that seem to keep arising," said Kwabena McGaney-Osei.
As a precaution, Henrico County utility crews and VDOT closed the Virginia Capital Trail between McCoul and Long Streets.
A spokesperson for the Capital Trail Foundation said they were reassured that the leak was contained and did not reach waterways, though environmental concerns remained among trail users.
Kim Richardson, who regularly uses the trail, expressed worry about potential contamination.
"I didn't know about that, I hopped on the trail a little early but it's disappointing to hear that's happened. I'm thinking about our river," Richardson said.
"We want our environment to be healthy and clean and we want to be able to get out and use it the way we can most of the time," Richardson said.
The trail is a popular destination for many Richmond residents, especially during cooler weather like Monday's temperatures, which brought more people outdoors.
Richardson appreciates the trail for its convenience and natural setting.
"I love that it's an opportunity to wind down after work. I work downtown so I can walk home. It's almost two and a half miles. My partner also gets to walk to and from work. It's just an opportunity to relax a bit, breathe, see some green," Richardson said.
Christopher Heyward, another trail enthusiast, hopes both the city and county will be proactive in protecting this community resource.
"I love coming out here just to see nature. I interact with folks. I met a lot of my neighbors out here on the trail, so I love it," Heyward said.
"You know we pay a lot of taxes here so it would be good to have utility and services that we can depend on," Heyward said.
CBS 6 is committed to sharing community voices on this important topic. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.
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