Raw sewage spills into Mississippi River after New Orleans pipe breaks

Raw sewage continues to flow into the Mississippi River after a sewer main broke last week in New Orleans.

• Repairs may last through the weekend, a spokesperson with the New Orleans Sewerage & Water Board says.

Driving the news: A 60-inch main broke Friday at S&WB's Station D at 2800 Florida Avenue.

• Leaders initiated an emergency bypass to direct the sewage into the river, a move they called "crucial" to avoid backups in homes.
• They said the pipe is more than 60 years old and cited its age as the cause of the break.

Zoom out: The station with the broken pipe services Lakeview, Gentilly and parts of Mid-City, Marigny and the Upper Ninth Ward, said Grace Birch, a S&WB spokesperson.

• The majority of the city's wastewater is still being directed and treated at the S&WB wastewater treatment plants, she said.