Woman Finds Hundreds Of Tiny Holes In Backyard — Then Expert Explains Why

The smell started two days later. Laura noticed it when she opened the back door after lunch. It was faint at first, something sour and rotten mixed with damp soil. She checked the rubbish bins, then walked along the fence in case something had died behind the bushes. By the time Daniel came outside, the smell had faded enough that he could barely notice it.

That evening, it returned stronger. Laura followed it across the yard until she reached the thickest cluster of holes. She crouched near one, then covered her nose. “It’s coming from here,” she said. Daniel leaned down for a second before standing again. “That smells like sewage.” They checked the outside drains and looked around the side of the house, but nothing seemed blocked or overflowing.

Laura shut the windows facing the garden. Even then, she thought she could still catch the smell inside. She spent that night wondering about a broken sewer line beneath the lawn. The next morning, the odor was still there. Before she could decide who to call, someone knocked at the door. Their neighbor, Mr. Harris, stood outside looking concerned. “Have you noticed anything strange with your water?” he asked her.