Home flooded with sewage three times in a year

A family said they have been left angry after the garden at their home in West Sussex was flooded with raw sewage for the third time in a year.

Thousands of litres of sewage flooded the garden of the property in Gatehouse Lane in Goddards Green, near Hurstpierpoint, in March and November last year, they said.

After a burst sewer on Wednesday, Mitch Syrett, whose parents own the property, said it amounted to "gross negligence" by Southern Water.

The water firm apologised, stating: "We're glad flooding inside homes has been avoided, but we realise how unpleasant external sewer floods are."

Mr Syrett said he worried about his father Kim Syrett, 67, who lives at the property with his wife Georgie, as he was "highly vulnerable" to infection due to being a recovering cancer patient.

"My children usually play in the garden, but are now unable," he said.

"It's gross negligence by Southern Water who are fully aware of the issue and have failed every time to resolve and contain the issue with essentially zero compensation offered."

His father said the water had been flowing across his garden and into his pond and a local stream.

"I'm absolutely awash with foul water. The whole garden is flooded with foul water," he said.

"It's a bodge job, and they [Southern Water] have not spent any money to fix the problem."

Southern Water said a large burst on a major sewer in Malthouse Lane had caused flooding to local roads and gardens.

More than 20 tankers had been deployed to manage flows in the area and prevent any internal flooding, while sandbags were mitigating pollution, the firm added.

"We're working hard to make repairs and won't stop until the fix is complete," a spokesperson said.

"We're also visiting affected customers and will be cleaning up in the area."

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