Florida Is Investigating the 342,000-Gallon Sewage Spill Beside Aquatica, and Orange County Has Apologized to Affected Residents
Florida's Department of Environmental Protection has opened an investigation into the sewage spill beside Aquatica Orlando and will decide after it wraps up whether more action is needed, Spectrum News 13 reported Friday, September 18.
The same report carried an apology from Orange County and a new detail: about a dozen manhole covers in the nearby Williamsburg neighborhood overflowed during the repair work, according to Spectrum News.
The spill site off Sea Splash Way, next to Aquatica's parking lot, on September 18. Photo: Spectrum News 13
What is new since Thursday
Orange County says 342,000 gallons of sewage spilled in two separate incidents, on September 6 and September 10, at a wastewater facility the Orlando Sentinel describes as directly adjacent to Aquatica's parking lot. Friday's reporting added several pieces:
- A state investigation. The DEP said, according to Spectrum News, that it is investigating and will determine whether additional steps are needed.
- The first fix did not hold. According to Spectrum News, the first spill happened September 6, temporary fixes failed, and the second spill followed on September 10.
- Manholes overflowed in a neighborhood. About a dozen manhole covers overflowed in Williamsburg while repairs were underway. Several residents said they smelled sewage the previous week but heard nothing from the county, Spectrum News reported.
- Cleanup is still going. Repairs are complete, but crews are still removing soil affected by the sewage, which the county plans to take to the county landfill.
- An apology. In a statement, the county said: "The Orange County Utilities team apologizes to the residents impacted and is looking at expanding customer communications beyond the regulatory requirements."
On why residents were not told, Orange County said it had no obligation to alert them because the spill was not on anyone's property, Spectrum News reported.
What the county still says
Orange County told Spectrum News that no sewage reached surface water or a nearby creek and that there are no environmental impacts. The county told the Sentinel that more than 100 trucks from around the state responded and that the spill was contained and sent back into the sewage system, with no surface water contaminated, including areas that drain into Shingle Creek. The county also told Spectrum News it is following all protocols required by the DEP and, so far, has not been directed to do any more soil or groundwater testing.
In their comments to the Sentinel, county spokespersons gave no cause for the two breaks. In a September 17 news release, the county said the pipe had "ongoing issues" and that heavy rainfall and pipe repair challenges resulted in the overflow, most of which it said was recovered and directed back into the sewage system.
The excavation at the spill site near Aquatica on Thursday, September 17. Photo: Silas Morgan / Orlando Sentinel
What SeaWorld says
A SeaWorld spokesperson told the Orlando Sentinel that Aquatica was not impacted by the spill. The Sentinel also reported that the county is working with SeaWorld Orlando, which owns Aquatica.
How it became public
The county released information about the spill Thursday morning, September 17, after receiving inquiries from media outlets, the Sentinel reported. That came over a week after the first spill and a day after Orange County mayoral candidate Chris Messina posted video of the broken pipe to Facebook. According to the Sentinel, he had been tipped off by workers who helped clean up the site.
Messina held a news conference at the site on Thursday and criticized the county's response. "Is the process to not inform the press and the public and the adjoining businesses?" he said, according to the Sentinel. "We have a major tourist attraction right here." He also questioned the county's claim that no surface water was contaminated. Messina faces Orange County Clerk of Court Tiffany Moore Russell in the officially nonpartisan runoff to succeed Mayor Jerry Demings.
Asked whether it had notified the public or the media before Thursday, the county told the Sentinel it "follows all regulations and issues notifications that are required" and that it had notified the appropriate state agencies. Asked about Messina's transparency criticism, the county repeated that statement.
Orange County mayoral candidate Chris Messina at his news conference at the spill site on Thursday, September 17. Photo: Silas Morgan / Orlando Sentinel
If you are heading to Aquatica: SeaWorld says the park was not impacted, and none of the reports we read describes any closure or schedule change there. The next thing to watch is what the DEP's investigation finds and whether it calls for any further steps.
Sources
- Spectrum News 13, 340,000 gallon wastewater spill near Aquatica fixed (Sarah Winkelmann, September 18, 2026)
- Orlando Sentinel, Broken pipe spilled 342K gallons of sewage near Aquatica, Orange County says (Silas Morgan, September 17, 2026)
- WFTV, Orange County says fix in place after 342,000-gallon wastewater leak near SeaWorld (James Tutten, September 18, 2026)
- Orange County Government, Sewer Pipe Returned to Service by Orange County Utilities, No Environmental or Public Health Threat (September 17, 2026)
Image credits: Aerial photo by Spectrum News 13. Site and news conference photos by Silas Morgan / Orlando Sentinel.
