Houston, we have a problem!
Usually, the remedy for a clogged toilet involves a plunger, which typically costs less than $10, and a minute or two of plunging. That’s not exactly the case when it comes to two of the Navy’s newest aircraft carriers.
Bloomberg reported that a new congression audit revealed that their toilet system clogs so often that the ships’ sewage systems have to be cleared out with “specialized acids costing about $400,000 a flush.”
The hefty price tag on the plumbing issue makes you wonder exactly what kind of waste these sailors are getting rid of. According to Shelby Oakley, a director of the Government Accountability Office, the issue is with the structure of the system itself.
“The pipes are too narrow and when there are a bunch of sailors flushing the toilet at the same time, like in the morning, the suction doesn’t work,” she explained. “The Navy didn’t anticipate this problem.”
