The blockage inside the collapsed sewer line that sent hundreds of millions of gallons of sewage into the Potomac River is worse than previously thought, and it’s going to take weeks longer to repair, DC Water officials said.

It will likely take an additional four to six weeks to get a system in place to safely remove large rocks and boulders crews found inside the sewer line during an overnight inspection, DC Water said in an update early Friday morning.

“Standard cleaning methods using industrial vacuums and jets are not sufficient to remove these large boulders,” DC Water said. “Addressing this blockage will require both larger machinery and manual labor. Workers will need to safely enter the pipe, use slings to maneuver around the rocks, and then rely on heavy equipment to extract each boulder, making removal a complex and highly specialized operation.”

The “large rock dam” stretches about 30 feet downstream of the original pipe collapse, the agency said.

According to DC Water, the rocks were likely excavated during the pipe’s construction in the 1960s and used as backfill. When the pipe failure happened last month, the rocks were drawn in by the force of the wastewater flow.

Then, as the surrounding material eroded into the sinkhole created by the collapse, extra rocks and soil accumulated and filled the pipe, helping create the rock dam.

A bill passed by the Republican-led House and now in the Senate could overturn parts of D.C.’s tax code for individuals and businesses, which some say could cause chaos for taxpayers.

When Congress passed President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year, the legislation affected local tax laws. Several states and Washington, D.C., decoupled, choosing not to implement some of those provisions in their local tax code.

But Republicans moved legislation to block D.C. from doing that. Democrats have pushed back.

“This will just wreak havoc on the overall system, because the people of the District of Columbia have already begun filling out, in many cases, their tax forms,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., said.

The House version of the bill passed along party lines. If the Senate approves the legislation and Trump signs it, it will throw D.C.’s tax season into chaos, D.C. officials say.

“It’s nothing short of deliberate administrative and fiscal sabotage,” said Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C.

In a letter to Congress, D.C. Chief Financial Officer Glenn Lee warned the District “would need to suspend the current filing season” to update tax forms and guidance, a process that would take months.

Mayor Muriel Bowser and D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson sent a letter explaining, “Disapproval at this stage would create huge administrative challenges, require taxpayers to re-file their taxes, render existing guidance and forms obsolete, and necessitate rapid mid-year changes to tax administration systems. It is unclear how quickly commercial tax preparation software could be updated to accommodate such changes, and District residents and businesses would likely experience confusion, as well as delays.”

“It would be totally disruptive to tax administration,” Mendelson said. “I want to emphasize that the disapproval resolutions have absolutely no effect on the federal budget or federal operations.”

“As of the end of last year, there were a dozen states in addition to the District that had adopted decoupling legislation, including Alabama,” he said. “I mentioned that just ‘cause that’s a red state.”

Republicans who support the legislation say it will allow D.C. residents and businesses to benefit from tax breaks on things, including:

• No tax on tips,
• No tax on overtime,
• American-made car loan interest deduction
• And a senior tax deduction.

The Senate is expected to vote on the legislation early next week.

WASHINGTON (7News) — Kristin Cabot, the woman who went viral after being singled out on a “kiss cam” at a Coldplay concert, is set to speak at a conference in Washington, D.C.

Cabot is set to speak at PR Week’s Crisis Comms Conference on April 16, according to the event’s website. She is set to talk about “taking back the narrative,” the website reads.

RELATED | Astronomer CPO Kristin Cabot resigns after Coldplay concert scandal

“During this session, the former Astronomer chief people officer and her PR representative, industry legend Dini von Mueffling, share the strategy — both immediate and long-term — that has helped Cabot take control of her narrative and rewrite her story,” the event description reads.

Cabot is billed as “Former Chief People Officer at Astronomer, HR Expert, Anti-Bullying Advocate” on the website.

Cabot and Astronomer CEO Andy Byron were caught in an embrace on camera in July. Seconds later, the pair attempted to hide.

“Either they’re having an affair or they’re very shy,” lead singer Chris Martin said in a video of the event.

RELATED | Coldplay ‘kiss cam’ exec Kristin Cabot finally breaks her silence on her ‘bad decision’

Following the event, Cabot said she faced bullying and harassment online.

“She began receiving unending vitriol, harassment, and myriad death threats,” her keynote speaker bio said on the event’s website. ” She now advocates against ritual public shaming.”

The event is set to take place at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center along Pennsylvania Avenue in D.C.

Tickets run $875 for an individual. Groups of three to five people can get tickets for $775 per person.