Salon finally reopens months after sewer collapse

Marcello Marino opened his hair salon in Ramsgate over 30 years ago

A salon owner who was forced to abandon his premises due to a collapsed sewer beneath the building said he is “very grateful” to have been able to reopen the business.

Marcello Marino said he was given two hours to evacuate the property in West Cliff Road, Ramsgate, which housed not only his business but also his family home.

Mr Marino has now reopened his business, but said he has lost a number of clients during the forced sudden closure last September.

A spokesman for Southern Water said: “The safety of our customers is paramount, which is why it was necessary for this family to temporarily move to other accommodation."

'Stressful'

Mr Marino told BBC Radio Kent he had been reporting the sewage leak to Southern Water for a year but the company failed to fix it.

The hairdresser, his wife and their three daughters stayed in a friend's flat during the sewer repairs, which he described as “stressful”.

Marcello Hair Salon reopened on Monday.

“The [next] two weeks is going to be busy. The first day open was very nice,” said Mr Marino.

He plans to donate £500 raised in a raffle and 10% of his next two weeks' earnings to the Pilgrims Hospice charity.

Southern Water said: “We are pleased to see that his business has reopened and he and his family are living at the property again.

“Following an investigation, we discovered the section of sewer that required repair is a private asset belonging to the property owner - however we carried out the work and have covered the costs involved in this.”