Sewage smell and flies as hole 'left open' in garden

A water company has apologised after digging a hole in a garden to fix a sewer but doing "very little" on the repair for more than a month.

Michael Luther, who lives in Lydney in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, had issues with a sewage pipe backing up in his garden for months.

Severn Trent went to fix it on 11 June but after digging a hole and removing the top half of the pipe have done very little, according to Mr Luther.

A spokesperson for Severn Trent apologised for the delays but said it was a "complex repair" and they will sort it out "as soon as possible".

Mr Luther said he has seen a significant increase in flies around his property during recent hot weather.

"It's the smell, the heat and the weather, with it being left open," Mr Luther added.

The sewage pipe runs up a hill connecting to half a dozen houses and is causing them problems as well.

Terry Fennells lives next door to Mr Luther and has found sewage backing in the pipe.

"When it blocks up it backfills up through the system back into our house," Mr Fennells said, adding they "can't come outside in the garden, the partner's been ill with it because of the smell and so many flies".

A spokesperson for Severn Trent said they want to "apologise for delays to this complex repair".

"Our teams had initially dug down to expose the sewer pipe on 11 June with a view to clearing the pipes and removing any defects.

"Unfortunately, our crews later discovered that due to how the pipe was originally laid out, we required a specialist team and equipment, so as not to cause any damage to the network."

The water company said they will get a specialist team and equipment in as soon as possible.

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