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Workers from the Pella Public Works Department and Parks and Recreation Services have been hard at work on the southwest side of Pella to repair damage caused by multiple days of rain. A release pipe that prevents a small pond near the Pella Soccer Complex from overflowing failed last Saturday, causing a large sinkhole to form on the pond’s east side near 218th Avenue.

Pella Public Works Director Denny Buyert tells KNIA/KRLS News that two to three feet of water was pumped out of the pond to take pressure off of the release and a new, temporary drainage ditch was cut to maintain the lowered water level. Buyert added that extreme corrosion of the release pipe was likely the key reason for the failure. However, multiple days of heavy rain and some tunneling around the pipe by muskrats added to the extent of the damage.

Buyert says the eventual course of action will likely include the use of new materials for the release pipe, as well as a redesign of the system used to maintain the pond’s water level. Normally, the pond is around 10 feet deep and provides some recreational fishing, as well as a source of water for irrigation of the Gene Van Wyk Soccer Complex. With Friday’s heavy rains and more precipitation in the forecast, Buyert says it will likely be two weeks or more before a solution can be reached.

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