SOUTHERN Water says it is offering compensation to homes affected by a burst sewerage pipe as work ends to fix it.

The pipe, in Orient Road, Lancing, burst on Wednesday afternoon and Southern Water says work to repair it has now been completed.

Southern Water has attempted to fix the pipe several times since it first burst in October.

However, leaks have continued and people in the area are worried about their houses being flooded.

A number of streets, including Orient Road and The Broadway are known to be affected.

Southern Water had been responding to the incident, using tankers to pump out and collect sewage while work takes place.

A spokesman for Southern Water said: "The fix to the burst in West Way, Lancing was finalised last night allowing local pumping stations to be restarted.

"Wastewater flow through the repair has been passing as normal overnight so the on-site tankers and traffic management on the A259 will be removed today.

"A focussed clean-up of the roads and homes in the immediate locality of the burst will continue at full-pace today – we will return after Christmas for a further, final clean-up of the wider area.

"Repair and restoration work will also take place after Christmas to the excavation sites, kerbs, pathways and roads.

"We will have people on site 24/7 across the whole Christmas period so that the burst sites can be monitored closely.

"We will be compensating all customers affected by this burst and want to assure them that we are committed to reducing the risk of future bursts.

"Initially We will be lining the main to improve its integrity in the new year, while we undertake surveying, design and planning to replace the full main, which extends over 1.7km, over the course of 2022.

"We are grateful for the patience and understanding the residents and users of the roads impacted by this event."

Eleven residents from the surrounding area have reportedly refused to pay their water bill due to the repeating problem.

Southern Water says that missed payments will impact their credit file and urges them to express concerns directly with them.

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