BALLWIN, Mo. – Stormy weather often brings too much water for the MSD drainage system to handle, leading to havoc for many families who are forced to deal with backups in their basements.

That’s just what happened to Sharon and Edward Mucci of Ballwin. They’re paying a heavy price for something that was not their fault.

“Cause every time it rains, it gets worse. And I’ve never had the flood backup and the waste backup ever, and it’s going to cost us probably $12,000 to get everything back to where it was before that we don’t’ have,” Sharon said.

The couple’s tile and dry wall were ruined.

So, who is to blame?

“I would assume it would be MSD’s responsibility, because it’s their erosion drain or waste drain,” she said. Again, we have insurance, but not enough!”

The Muccis asked the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District for help. They didn’t like the answer.

Bess McCoy, public affairs manager for MSD, stated that the Muccis experienced a basement backup due to an “overcharged main.”

“Essentially, what that means is that more water got into the sewers than they were ever designed to handle,” she said. “We’re happy to have a limited insurance program to assist in those situations.”

But McCoy said MSD can only give the couple $3,000 for their losses.

“It is a big problem and we’re just working people, so we can use some help back here,” Sharon Mucci said.

McCoy acknowledges the Muccis are not at fault for the backup but says it’s also MSD’s fault.

“The system was working as designed. It was just too much water,” she said.

So, for now, it seems like the Muccis are out of luck in getting more out of MSD and are just not sure which way to go from here to replace all that they’ve lost.