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10K gallons of untreated wastewater leaked into Peconic River

The state DEC says a pipe broke during sewer construction on East Main Street in Riverhead on Wednesday.

Tara Rincon

Jan 15, 2026, 5:14 AM

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About 10,000 gallons of untreated wastewater is in the Peconic River.

The state DEC says a pipe broke during sewer construction on East Main Street in Riverhead on Wednesday.

The Suffolk Health Department is urging people to avoid contact with the east of Grangebel Park.

The leak was fixed within an hour, but water did get into the ground.

Riverhead Town officials tell News 12, "We checked the dewatering box, the dewatering box was clear, there was nothing in it, no smell, no odor, no color change in the water. The water just looked like regular ground water. But that was pumping into the river.”

There haven’t been any impacts to the river yet, but the DEC says they will continue to monitor the situation.

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