Multiple gardens flooded with raw sewage after two wigs are flushed down the loo

28 April 2023 , 15:04

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The clean up team discovered a pair of wigs as the culprits behind the blockage (Image: Yorkshire Water / SWNS)

Several gardens were flooded with waste after a sewer was blocked by a pair of wigs.

A specialist team were sent to deal with the overflow of raw sewage which took six tanks of water to clear.

The 'hair raising' incident took place on a residential street in Bradford, West Yorkshire.

Lee Pinder, regional operations manager at Yorkshire Water, said: “Every day our teams find blockages in our network caused by unsuitable items being discarded into the network, but wigs are a new one for us.

“Unfortunately, there’s a serious side to blockages caused by unusual items and in this case a number the blockage caused sewage to escape the network and enter the gardens of nearby properties.

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“It is important people consider the impact of using toilets and drains as bins and that they don’t discard of unwanted items in the sewer."

Lee Pinder, from Yorkshire Water, said "wigs are a new one" for the team (Getty Images/EyeEm)

The firm reminded customers they just want the thee three Ps in their pipes – pee, poo and toilet paper – as well as wastewater from showers, baths and sinks.

Mr Pinder added: "All other items don’t break down and will ultimately lead to blockages in the sewer or at our wastewater treatment works.”

Sewage spills have become a subject of regular debate and outrage in recent months with the publishing of new data.

Figures from the Environment Agency show almost a million hours worth of sewage discharges occurred across coastal constituencies last year.

The overflow happened on a residential street in Bradford, West Yorks. (scu)

In 2022, an alarming 141,777 sewage dumping events took place across 137 of a total of 139 coastal constituencies in England and Wales.

This is the equivalent to one discharge every three minutes and 45 seconds, adding up to a combined total of 980,999 hours, equivalent to more than 111 years.

Torridge and West Devon had the highest total hours of sewage discharges, with 57,494 hours.

Shadow environment secretary Jim McMahon said people who live by the coast “should be able to just enjoy the place where they live without having to worry about encountering filthy raw sewage”.

He accused the Conservatives of allowing communities to be treated as “open sewers”.

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