Sewage overflows ruining gardens and garages in Hoo
Homes in Marley Road have been hit by blocked drains due to increased rainfall
Residents are having to fork out a small fortune in scented candles to flush out the “sickening smell” of raw sewage flooding their properties and gardens.
Homes in Marley Road, Hoo, were hit by the foul stench following drain blockages worsened by increased rainfall.
Tracy Medhurst, 54, says they’ve been on the phone to Southern Water reporting issues nearly everyday for the last three weeks.
“When I saw it again, I just wanted to cry, it’s absolutely disgusting,” she told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).
“This shouldn’t be happening, Southern Water should have sorted the problem out. They’ve had three weeks, and what have they done? Nothing.
“This was my home and it feels like it’s been destroyed. You smell it everywhere.
“We’ve got candles, we’ve got everything scented and it’s costing a fortune buying products just to try and get rid of the smell.”
Tracy added when they rang the water company’s helpline following the latest incident on Monday (October 20) the response was someone would be out within 72 hours.
Husband Stephen, 62 said they can’t even estimate the cost of the damage caused.
He said: “We cannot get rid of the smell and we’ve had this horrible stench for last three weeks.
“I couldn’t even put a figure on it to be honest of all the stuff that’s damaged or we’ve had to throw away, but we’ve had no mention of any compensation.
“Around here they’re building more and more houses but they aren’t upgrading any of the drainage systems.”
Neighbour Helen Bruce, 80, says she constantly fears it’s going to happen again and again.
She said: “It’s been really stressful, we haven’t been able to go anywhere because I need to stay and see it gets cleaned up properly.
“The entire garden has been ruined with sewage; it’s underneath every plant pot I move.
“It’s a terrible, sickening smell. It puts you off your food and makes your throat dry, makes you feel ill.
“They were working on a drain problem at the end of our road and were supposed to have cleared it but four days afterwards the rain just brought it all up.
“Now every time we see water outside I think ‘Oh no, not again’.”
Independent group councillor Michael Pearce said the water company needed to fork out for clean-up costs.
He said: “Southern Water’s inaction concerning the properties on Marley Road is completely unacceptable.
“I’ve demanded Southern Water rectify the problem urgently and pay for any clean up costs.
“I also believe they should pay compensation to my residents for the distress and disruption.”
Southern Water said the blockage had been caused by items which aren’t supposed to be flushed down the drains, such as wet wipes and oils.
The company also said it had provided support to clean up the mess and directed customers to its online compensation forms.
A Southern Water spokesperson added: “Our teams were on site at Marley Road and found blockages in the underground pipes and removed ‘unflushables’ – wet wipes, fats, oils and grease – which caused external flooding to two properties in the road.
“The heavy rain on Monday also added to the build-up in the underground network.
“We have provided drying equipment to our customers – humidifiers – to help dry out the garages.”