A ROAD over the River Itchen, which was flooded with sewage, has finally re-opened after more than a week of work but remains in a “dangerous” state.
Kiln Lane by Brambridge Garden Centre was opened on the afternoon of Wednesday, January 25 despite Southern Water still working towards a long-term fix for the persistent flooding.
The road, between Colden Common and Otterbourne, was hit by heavy rainfall on January 13 and 14 which led to a manhole being lifted, allowing sewage to flow into the neighbouring Hampshire chalk stream.
After a day of cars hitting the manhole and braving the flooding, the road was eventually closed and Southern Water sent tankers to the site to remove the excess water on the evening of January 14.
READ MORE: Brambridge: Flooding and sewage flows into River Itchen again
After 11 days of work by contractors, who had to prevent unsanitary items such as toilet roll from spewing into the river, the road has been re-opened but remains in a dangerous state according to city councillor Sue Cook.
The councillor for Colden Common has sent another “hurry up” email to the Environment Agency, Hampshire Highways and Southern Water to urge them to clean up the road, with toilet roll now left in the preventative grates and make the road safe again.
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Cllr Cook said: “Where there was water continually going through the road there, it has worn away and created dangerous drop. There needs to be road signs and cones in place to alert people.
“It’s a beautiful place but at the moment it looks like a scrap store. The road needs to be reinstated. Let’s get it cleaned up and back to a safe state. I want guarantees that Kiln Lane is on a priority list to fix.”
Although tankers have left and the road has been re-opened, Southern Water has warned that it is an ongoing issue and could happen again with heavy rainfall.
The tankers were used to mitigate the flooding of the manhole, but the water company is working towards a long-term fix.
This wasn't the first time the utility company had to company was called to the site this year, with the same incident occurring over the new year.
Southern Water has been contacted for comment.
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