No swim warning lifted after sewage pipe fix

South West Water said sewage tankers would remain on site as a precaution

Warnings against swimming at a popular beach have been lifted after a broken sewer pipe was temporarily fixed, East Devon District Council has said.

There was a no swim alert over the weekend off Exmouth, as South West Water (SWW) dealt with a burst pipe on private land near waste water treatment works in Maer Lane.

A no swim alert was also in place on Thursday before being lifted on Friday last week.

A spokesperson for SWW apologised for the disruption and said it was planning a permanent repair.

Derek Johnson, who runs a paddle board and kayak enthusiast group, said that sewage leaks had "taken away our playground".

He added: "It keeps on happening and people are afraid to go in the water now."

The environment head for East Devon District Council, Geoff Jung, said the sewage leak over the weekend was "very serious".

He called for SWW to "urgently" review its infrastructure in Exmouth.

Andy Tyerman from pollution reduction group Escape said the pipe burst had closed beaches in peek tourist season

Andy Tyerman, from the group Escape, which tries to improve water quality by reducing sewage pollution, said SWW's communication was "poor".

He said: "All the beaches have been closed for the weekend and it’s ruined it for lots of holidaymakers.

“We have sewage problems all the time, but this is the third time we’ve had a burst pipe.

"I spoke to a woman who had been swimming; she was distraught because she was pregnant and hadn’t realised there was an alert on."

A spokesperson for SWW apologised for the disruption and said it was planning a permanent repair.

The utility said: "We understand and appreciate the concerns of the council and our customers in light of the recent bursts in the area.

"We want to reassure them that we are working extremely hard to fix the burst sewer at Maer Lane and we are sorry that this has happened.

"We have kept East Devon District Council consistently updated throughout this incident and we will continue to do everything we can to deliver improvements in Exmouth."