Sewage shuts Saratoga Salvation Army

Sewage overflow in the Salvation Army building on Friday shut down all charitable services until further notice.

Blockage in the sewage line on Thanksgiving Day caused pumps in the building to overheat and shut off after a full day of holiday events that drew about 200 participants.

The pumps turned back on early Friday morning, but the blockage resulted in sewage spewing from the building’s toilets and sinks and seeping into drywall, through the floors and into the ceiling below, said Roger Miller, envoy at the Salvation Army at 27 Woodlawn Ave.

He showed up at the building about 7:30 a.m. Friday, shortly before the biggest explosion occurred.

“It just shot out everywhere,” Miller said.

The organization won’t find out until at least Monday where the blockage is or how much of the resulting damage will be covered by insurance.

“We have several rooms upstairs with standing sewage,” Miller said. Ceiling tiles, wood trim and drywall will have to be torn out and replaced.

In the meantime, none of the organization’s programs can be held at the building.

The Salvation Army offers showers and assistance to people needing shelter, serves breakfast six days a week, holds Sunday school and church services, an after-school program, a food pantry, a free clothing room and hosts Boy Scout meetings every Monday.

“When you have restrooms out, you can’t have people in,” Miller said.

The sewage accident hits the Salvation Army in the middle of its kettle fundraiser, the main fundraiser of the year, and during preparations for its annual holiday food basket giveaway.

“It’s all kind of snowballing,” Miller said.

“This has been a horrendous year for money coming in, because it just hasn’t, and at the same time, demands on services are extremely high.”

On Thanksgiving Day, the local Alcoholics Anonymous group held meetings all day, an event that was expanded to Thanksgiving and Christmas in addition to a New Year’s Eve celebration held last year, Miller said.

“It’s not their fault,” but the stress of extra people in the building might have contributed to the sewer failure, he said.

The closure also affects the Saratoga Farmers’ Market, which operates inside the building every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Today, vendors will set up outside the building, said Suzanne Carreker-Voigt, market coordinator.

“It hasn’t been canceled, but I suspect it’ll be an abbreviated version,” she said Friday.

The Saturday after Thanksgiving is typically a busy day at the market, as out-of-town residents who are visiting local relatives stop by to pick up some produce.

Holiday shopping starts at the market Saturday as well and continues through a typically busy December season, Carreker-Voigt said.

“We have tote bags and gifts. They often get bought up for Christmas presents.”