Anger at Southern Water not repairing pipes sooner in Lancing

Southern Water conducted repairs in the West Beach area of Lancing last year which involved fitting a plastic lining inside old pipes and expanding it to prevent leaks.

The area saw five different bursts between October and December last year before the repair but the water company did not complete its re-lining scheme to future proof all pipes in the area.

The water provider was “just days away” from working on the pipe which burst yesterday and one resident has accused it of “tinkering around” rather than “sorting out the source of the problem”.

The flooded road in Lancing yesterday

Nigel Sweet, who has lived in The Broadway, Lancing for three years, said: “I can’t see how we’re any further than we were in October last year. There has been ongoing work in the area trying to patch up damage caused since the flooding last year.

“Southern Water must have spent eye-watering sums of money on this but for whatever reason they have not done the obvious thing and replaced the main pipe which they admit they have got to do.

“Why would you tinker around the edge, spending a lot of money on reparations rather than sorting out the source of the problem. That is what is frustrating us.

The water mains pipe burst around 11am

“I wasn’t surprised when I came home today because the problem has not been fully resolved. There is no new pipe work in there so it was an accident waiting to happen.

The pipe burst around 11am yesterday and Peter and his partner came back to see it flooding “kerb to kerb”.

He added: “We had been out shopping and came back to see it bubbling up, exactly the same as before. It’s like deja vu. It’s the same sort of scale, flooding down the road.

“It is actually in West Way, it looks like it’s coming out of multiple places in the pavement and road at quite a rate. It’s like a little fountain of sewage if that’s not too horrible a thought.”

Sandbags in West Way, Lancing

A Southern Water spokeswoman said: “We are extremely sorry for the disruption caused by a burst wastewater main in West Way, Lancing. Our customer team is already onsite and we will do all we can to support people.

“We completely understand the distress felt by the residents who are yet again affected by flooding in their road.

“This is particularly frustrating as we were just days away from undertaking a re-lining scheme to future proof the pipe.

Workers in West Way

“Our priority is now to stop the spill by using tankers to take on the flow of wastewater – the tankers carry out crucial work meaning that many nearby homes can continue to use their kitchens and bathrooms as normal.

“Once they are in place the pumping stations serving the pipe can be switched off and we will start clearing up.

“To allow all this work to happen there will be traffic management in place on the A259. This allows work to be undertaken safely without a complete road closure. The A259 is a busy route, and we are also sorry to all road users that will be impacted by this.”

Southern Water revealed to The Argus last week how it tackled the problems seen in West Beach last year.