Southern Water blames heavy rainfall for flooding in Gosport street and foul stench
Southern Water has blamed heavy rainfall for flooding in a Gosport street that is regularly swamped with water.
Heavy downpours left Leesland Road “deep” in water on Monday morning as beleaguered residents expressed their disappointment at what is becoming a familiar scene during wet weather.
Blocked drains saw water spill out into the road which was then blocked off. To add to the feeling of irritation, the road “stank of sewage” according to resident Victoria Smith. She said on Monday: “Overnight we’ve had flooding from the rain and the sewage drains have popped off so our roads have been flooded.
“The water has come near my house and is quite deep. It stinks of sewage water at the moment so that’s not very nice. It affects us every time it floods. We’ve had no sleep because we’re up early trying to sort out our cars, get things moved and block off the road.
“It normally happens once or twice a year but when it happens there is no escape from it. I’m very disappointed because (Southern Water) did some work here before and all the drains were meant to be cleaned out and unblocked but nothing has worked at all. It’s happened three times in the last year and the fact the drains still aren’t working is very disappointing.”
However, Southern Water has removed itself from any blame after stating the “primary cause of the flooding was heavy rainfall”. The firm also said it had carried out a number of improvements to the sewer network in the area during the last two years.
A spokesperson for Southern Water said: “We’re investigating flooding in Leesland Road, Gosport on Monday morning. So far our investigations show that our network was operating as it should be.”