News

We've come across tens of thousands of sewer blockages caused by wipes over the last few years, but the pile pulled out of the sewer in Stroud town centre this weekend was particularly nasty.

We were called out to deal with the sewer blockage in London Road.  Our team carried out an investigation and discovered that the sewer was nearly full to the brim, with a disgusting pile of wipes, mixed with fat and sewage.

Craig Bayliss, waste team manager for the area, said: “We knew that the sewer was blocked, and we know that in 70% of case, it’s wipes that cause the issue, but
we’ve never seen a pile quite this big. 
It took two people three hours to get it out.  And what’s so frustrating is that it was
totally avoidable.

“These sewer blockages, if not identified and cleared can lead to sewers backing up and overflowing into people’s homes and gardens.  And it’s not necessarily the people who put the wrong things down the toilet, sinks or drains that are affected.  The blockage can happen further down the street, so what you do in your home can be causing a problem for your neighbours, which is what we suspect may have happened in this case.

“To help prevent the majority of blockages, just remember the 3 P’s – the only things that should go into the sewers are Paper, Pee and Poo.  Please help us to keep your sewers flowing efficiently by getting a bin for the bathroom and disposing of items that way
rather than down the toilet.  And for fat, oil and grease, pour it into a pot or jar with a lid, or one of the free fat traps that our customers can request here.”

If you do run into problems, either slow drains or a blocked sewer which is our responsibility you can report it here or by calling 0800 783 4444.