bA contractor working on one sewer line accidentally ruptured a large sewer main Friday morning that caused at least 30,000 gallons of raw sewage to spill into the Pasquotank River, officials said.

The spill prompted state officials to issue swimming and fishing advisories downstream from Charles Creek at the river in Pasquotank and Camden counties. It was not known how long the advisories would remain in effect.

There were no reports of illnesses from the spill, and state environmental officials were trying to determine whether any fish were killed by exposure to fecal coliform or from lack of oxygen in the raw sewage, said Al Hodge, a water quality specialist with the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

City officials said the spill was contained by early Friday afternoon, and the broken line was expected to be fixed by Friday night.

"It's an unfortunate situation that it happened," said City Manager Rich Olson, who was in Myrtle Beach Friday attending an ElectriCities convention with several city councilors. "It's never acceptable where you have raw sewage to go into the water."

Olson said the spill was much smaller in comparison to 5.7 million gallon spill in May 2005 at the Knobbs Creek sewer main along the Pasquotank River. At the time, that was the largest reported spill in North Carolina history, and resulted in a $65,414 fine — also the largest fine for a sewage spill in the state's history.

Tanker trucks carried raw sewage from the line to the city's sewage treatment plant at Knobbs Creek throughout Friday afternoon and into the evening, said Chuck Jones, wastewater treatment plant operator for Elizabeth City.

Hodge said it is too early to say if the city will face fines for the latest sewage spill.

Hodge also said the city's preliminary spill estimate of 30,000 to 40,000 gallons may be too low.

"It may be 30,000 to 40,000 (gallons) or 130,000 to 140,000 gallons," he said.

Jones said the break occurred around 7:40 a.m. Friday when a contractor trying to repair a sewer line at the city's Dawson Creek sewer lift station inadvertently drove a piling into the ground that ruptured a 10-inch force main line.

"The city immediately took action to oversee the contractor in making the necessary repairs to the force main," Jones. "The city adjusted valves at other pump stations to minimize the discharge."

Godwin Pumps of Virginia was contacted to help install a bypass pump around 3:30 p.m. Friday, Jones said.

The sewage was diverted into tanker trucks and taken to the city's sewage treatment plant.

Meanwhile, the contractor who broke the line was working late into the day Friday to fix it, Jones said.

"By the close of business today (Friday), a permanent bypass should be in place until the line is completely repaired," Jones said.

Olson said the city will perform several water tests below the spillage area and provide the state with results.

Hodge said environmental officials will assess the damage Monday, unless further complications happen over the weekend.