Sewer Backup Leaves 91-year-old Maine woman with $28K Clean-up Bill But Government Officials Say That’s Her Problem

A pugged-up sewer that virtually destroyed an elderly Saco woman’s home wasn’t her fault.

But city officials stuck her with a bill of nearly $30,000 to clean up the mess in the wake of the sewer backup.

The sad story of Elsie Boudreau’s heartache at the hands of city government was unearthed by CBS News 13 investigative team.

Boudreau told the news outlet she’s still trying to comprehend the mess she walked into late last year.

Raw sewage had backed up into the basement of her home.

Everything in her finished basement, from carpeting and paneling to furniture and family keepsakes, had to be torn out and thrown away.

“It was many things that bring back memories that are now gone,” Boudreau said. “It’s heartbreaking.”

In total, Boudreau says the cleanup alone cost more than $28,000. Her homeowners insurance covered part of the damage, but not all of it.

“It wasn’t caused by me,” Boudreau said. “The only thing it caused me was heartaches and sadness.”

Boudreau says she was later told a bath towel had blocked part of the sewer system on Franklin Street, a road near her home. Several surrounding houses were affected, though she says her damage was the worst.

City officials denied liability, claiming they had “no prior knowledge of the hazard.”

Their viewpoint apparently is ‘sounds like a personal problem – she’s got hers, we’ve got ours.’