There’s more than 50 million gallons of sewage that spilled all over St. Petersburg’s shores. The amount of finger pointing regarding who is to blame for the situation may be just as alarming.

  • Whistleblower disputes Mayor Kriseman's assurances
  • Kriseman maintains wastewater was tested, deemed safe
  • Kriseman insists whistleblower's job is safe

Everyone from the governor to members of Congress are speaking out. St. Pete Mayor Rick Kriseman is in the thick of it.
 
“Any politician who tells somebody that they guarantee that this will never happen again is lying to them,” said Kriseman, who placed two top sewer officials on unpaid leave Wednesday due to the crisis.
 
But there’s another finger pointing right back at the mayor -- a city employee who is calling himself a "whistleblower."

In a letter sent to the mayor and city leaders, that employee acknowledged the mayor’s claims that the water wasn’t a danger to the public.

But the letter points out 10 violations in that same spill and insists that the water wasn't as clean as Kriseman said it was.

The mayor, for his part, is standing by what he said.
 
“We’ve had testing done of the water," said Kriseman. "[The whistleblower] is referring to some other material that’s in the water. We tested it and what we were really concerned most about was 'did the water pose a threat to human health?' And the answer to that was 'no.'”
 
For some area residents, Kriseman's assurances are a hard sell.

“I have some pretty aggravated opinions about our mayor and some of the decisions that were made that I’m sure were altruistic at the time," said resident Carrie Caignet. "But they were clearly unrealistic as far as being able to keep sewage water from backing up into the bay and into our homes."
 
Residents Kenny and Marit Parker said that’s exactly where some of that water ended up: in their home. The couple said not only did they have flood damage near their Azalea neighborhood, but they also had to deal with the smell of it in their home.
 
“I want to see St. Pete thrive and survive in the next 50 to 100 years, but we need to make some changes," said Parker. "We’re a water-based community, and so it makes me nervous. I don’t want to move, I don’t want to leave here."
 
Mayor Kriseman said the city's long term plan will hopefully ease some of those concerns.
 
Kriseman went on to say there hasn’t been any formal whistleblower lawsuit filed by any employee to protect themselves. But he said the employee who submitted the latest letter isn’t at risk of losing their job.  
 
Congressman David Jolly, meanwhile, is now encouraging other employees to come forward with information and offering them help with whistleblower protection.