Cole County homeowner gets raw end of leaky septic tank

A neighbor’s leaky septic tank in Cole County has caused one homeowner to spend tens of thousands of dollars in repairs to their property.

Steve Moore’s mother lives just off of Scott Station Road.

Her next door neighbor’s septic tank has leaked for nearly ten years, saturating the yard around her house, and flooding her basement when it rains.

She spent more than $11,000 to install a pump system earlier this year to alleviate the run-off from her neighboring property.

The property has had several owners over the years, and the most recent owner was told the septic tank was new when he bought the property.

However, it is still leaking.

The county notified the owner he was not in compliance back in April, and the county said he had until July to fix the problem.

The landlord has told the Moore’s he doesn’t have the money to fix the septic system but has turned the water off to the home and is not allowing anyone to live there.