Aberdeen Woman: 'Lord, Don't Let Me Drown In Feces'

ABERDEEN, NJ — Yes, that was the actual quote from an Aberdeen Township woman last week after a broken sewer line sent raw sewage flowing into her basement. As Patch reported, the incident happened last Thursday at Aberdeen resident Eloise Smart-Loadholt's home in the Cliffwood section of town. The raw sewage poured into her basement for seven hours she said, and she actually became light-headed at the smell.

“I mean feces is pouring out of the toilet, pouring out of the tub like a river. I said, ‘Niagara Falls is coming here?’” Smart-Loadholt told NBC 4.

“I’m a nurse for over 20 years, and I've never seen so much feces in my life," the 65-year-old told the Asbury Park Press, adding with a chuckle, "I said 'Lord, don’t let me drown in feces.'”

While Smart-Loadholt said the Township was slow to respond to help her with the problem, Aberdeen Township Administrator Holly Reycraft told the APP the Township had been on the since early Thursday morning and is correcting the problem. Aberdeen Township also said she had a tenant illegally living in her basement.

The woman's home was the only home affected.

Photo of Cliffwood, New Jersey, an unincorporated community within Aberdeen Township. Photo taken looking south along Cliffwood Avenue (County Route 6A) at Smith Court. Author: Mr. Matté /Wikimedia Commons