RAW sewage has been backing up into a home in Hellingly for almost a week and the owner says she has ‘lost everything’.
Last weekend’s extreme weather saw almost 40mm of rain falling in the area in just 24 hours which caused eight inches of raw sewage flooding into Raine Grosvenor’s home in Church Road, Hellingly.
Raine is housebound along with her severely Autistic son so they cannot move to another location because of his condition. Food deliveries are also difficult as the road is often closed due to the floods.
On Saturday night, the nearby River Bull burst its banks causing localised flooding around Hailsham and Hellingly. But, the sewerage system was so full, raw toilet waste flowed into Raine’s home ruining furniture, appliances and knocking out the electricity supply.
She told Hailsham News: “It was absolutely terrifying. I accept that by living here, we are susceptible to occasional flooding, but raw sewage should stay underground. Our whole ground floor is contaminated and unliveable.
“All our neighbours used pumps to empty the house but there’s simply nowhere for it to go – all the local rivers, ditches and sewers are full and not receding.
“I’ve not been contacted by Southern Water to resolve my situation. We had a team come out to confirm it was indeed sewage coming into our home and that’s it. I’ve contacted them several times, along with our MP and local councillors, but I’m still no further forward.
“Although my electricity supply is back, I’m scared to switch everything on as there’s so much water around. All I want is to be able to cook, have a shower and use my toilet.”
We visited Raine’s home and it was cold, smelled of strong sewage and was only lit by battery-powered fairy lights. The toilet is unusable, all her furniture is contaminated and all carpets and rugs and lying in a pile in the garden.
A spokesperson for Southern Water told Hailsham News: “The recent extreme weather has meant that the River Bull has burst its banks, which filled the surface water gullies, flooding the road and two properties. Our specialist teams have previously installed ‘Non-return valves’ to make sure that sewage does not backwash into the properties. Teams have visited the residents and we are in contact with them.”
