There are a lot of trash bags in the yards of homes along Linn Drive in Washington Township, Fayette County. While they are from the night of the Fourth of July, it was far from a celebration. “The water was just coming up,” said Melanie Miller, who lives on Linn. “There was nothing we could do to stop it.”Several residents of the neighborhood said that sewer water came from underground and flooded their basements with up to six feet of water. “Who would think you would flood in the country on level property?” said Rich Planey, who’s resided on Linn since 2017. “It still smells. It was sewage. I was coming down to grab the TV and whatever else I could. It was already up to my knees.”Planey started to worry as soon as he saw heavy rain last Saturday.”I pulled my phone out and took a video of sewage just coming up through my drains,” he said. “I called Jeff, my next-door neighbor, and said, ‘Hey, we’re flooding.'”As soon as Jeff Roberts got that call, he knew things were going to get worse.”It’s a total loss,” Roberts said. “I already knew before we got home. By the time I got home, we couldn’t go down the street. The emergency crews were here. This is the second time, so I was smart enough not to rebuild or do anything .”” went through, dye tested everybody’s home, and then said, supposedly, this would never happen again,” Planey said. Residents of Linn Drive added that a pipe was replaced nearly eight years ago as well, but after this weekend, they know that’s not enough to stop the rain. “We’ve been without heat, hot water; we have no way to wash clothes,” Roberts said. “That’s happened for everybody. It’s not just the money, the effort, the sewage, the health risks; it’s also the emotional side of things.””I have to rip walls out where the water was,” Miller said. “There’s mold. I have no hot water. The furnace isn’t working. I have no central air conditioning either.”Miller moved to the area in 2020, thinking that the flooding issues had been resolved.”This is my first experience ever with a flood,” she said. “It was chaos. I’m definitely worried about it. I’m scared that this is going to happen again.”Now, she wants answers as much as her neighbors. “I just want someone to take accountability and help us fix this so that this doesn’t keep happening again,” Miller said. “Somebody has to take accountability for how this keeps happening because this is a lot of money out of our pockets.”David Tamasy, the solicitor for both Washington Township and the Municipal Authority of Washington Township, issued the following statement to Pittsburgh’s Action News Four.”Both the Washington Township Supervisors and the Washington Township Municipal Authority are aware of sewage and water backflows into the homes of various Washington Township residents. The Township municipal building was also flooded by the waters of this most recent storm and will be closed to the public this week as we undertake flood remediation efforts. The Township plans to reopen the municipal building on July 13 and will be open during regular business hours. “The Township strongly encourages residents who were impacted by the flooding to contact both the Township Secretary and the Municipal Authority of Washington Township via email or phone so they can be contacted by Township Representatives regarding the flooding and directly assess its impact. “Both the Supervisors of Washington Township and the board members of the Municipal Authority of Washington Township shall meet in the near future to coordinate water remediation and control efforts in the affected areas. The Washington Township Supervisors strongly encourage residents to attend the next regular meeting of the Municipal Authority of Washington Township on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at 6:00 P.M. at the Township Meeting Room. “Both the Washington Township Board of Supervisors and the Washington Township Municipal Authority Board Members share the concerns and frustrations of the township residents and shall work diligently to address the impacts of this recent flooding.””They need to step up to the plate,” Planey said about the township. “We can’t keep going through it. We’re in the highest-paying tax bracket in this area, and this is what we get.”

WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP, Pa. —

There are a lot of trash bags in the yards of homes along Linn Drive in Washington Township, Fayette County. While they are from the night of the Fourth of July, it was far from a celebration.

“The water was just coming up,” said Melanie Miller, who lives on Linn. “There was nothing we could do to stop it.”

Several residents of the neighborhood said that sewer water came from underground and flooded their basements with up to six feet of water.

“Who would think you would flood in the country on level property?” said Rich Planey, who’s resided on Linn since 2017. “It still smells. It was sewage. I was coming down to grab the TV and whatever else I could. It was already up to my knees.”

Planey started to worry as soon as he saw heavy rain last Saturday.

“I pulled my phone out and took a video of sewage just coming up through my drains,” he said. “I called Jeff, my next-door neighbor, and said, ‘Hey, we’re flooding.'”

As soon as Jeff Roberts got that call, he knew things were going to get worse.

“It’s a total loss,” Roberts said. “I already knew before we got home. By the time I got home, we couldn’t go down the street. The emergency crews were here. This is the second time, so I was smart enough not to rebuild or do anything [in my basement].”

“[Washington Township crews] went through, dye tested everybody’s home, and then said, supposedly, this would never happen again,” Planey said.

Residents of Linn Drive added that a pipe was replaced nearly eight years ago as well, but after this weekend, they know that’s not enough to stop the rain.

“We’ve been without heat, hot water; we have no way to wash clothes,” Roberts said. “That’s happened for everybody. It’s not just the money, the effort, the sewage, the health risks; it’s also the emotional side of things.”

“I have to rip walls out where the water was,” Miller said. “There’s mold. I have no hot water. The furnace isn’t working. I have no central air conditioning either.”

Miller moved to the area in 2020, thinking that the flooding issues had been resolved.

“This is my first experience ever with a flood,” she said. “It was chaos. I’m definitely worried about it. I’m scared that this is going to happen again.”

Now, she wants answers as much as her neighbors.

“I just want someone to take accountability and help us fix this so that this doesn’t keep happening again,” Miller said. “Somebody has to take accountability for how this keeps happening because this is a lot of money out of our pockets.”

David Tamasy, the solicitor for both Washington Township and the Municipal Authority of Washington Township, issued the following statement to Pittsburgh’s Action News Four.

“Both the Washington Township Supervisors and the Washington Township Municipal Authority are aware of sewage and water backflows into the homes of various Washington Township residents. The Township municipal building was also flooded by the waters of this most recent storm and will be closed to the public this week as we undertake flood remediation efforts. The Township plans to reopen the municipal building on July 13 and will be open during regular business hours.

“The Township strongly encourages residents who were impacted by the flooding to contact both the Township Secretary and the Municipal Authority of Washington Township via email or phone so they can be contacted by Township Representatives regarding the flooding and directly assess its impact.

“Both the Supervisors of Washington Township and the board members of the Municipal Authority of Washington Township shall meet in the near future to coordinate water remediation and control efforts in the affected areas. The Washington Township Supervisors strongly encourage residents to attend the next regular meeting of the Municipal Authority of Washington Township on Tuesday, July 28, 2026, at 6:00 P.M. at the Township Meeting Room.

“Both the Washington Township Board of Supervisors and the Washington Township Municipal Authority Board Members share the concerns and frustrations of the township residents and shall work diligently to address the impacts of this recent flooding.”

“They need to step up to the plate,” Planey said about the township. “We can’t keep going through it. We’re in the highest-paying tax bracket in this area, and this is what we get.”