Fault leaves sewage trapped under disabled Coventry man's flat

James Edgar had to move to a hotel for the repair work to be carried out

Renovations to a disabled man's home found a "cesspit" of human excrement due to faulty sewage works.

Builders were installing an accessible wet room for James Edgar, from Coventry, after he had leg amputation surgery in March.

They found about 61cm (24 in) of accumulated excrement trapped beneath his floorboards.

The housing association which owns the flat said repair work had been carried out but Mr Edgar still has concerns.

Mr Edgar said he was "over the moon" when he received a grant for an accessible bathroom.

However when Sudhir Sard and his team of builders ripped up the floor to start the work they had to stop almost instantly.

"It was a cesspit," said Mr Sard. "It was around two foot deep of excrement that had built up... the whole left side of the building was covered."

The issue was uncovered during work to build an accessible bathroom for Mr Edgar

It is thought that sewage pipes had not been connected properly meaning sewage was regularly leaking out.

Mr Edgar was moved into a hotel by housing association Orbit, which told the BBC repairs had since been "fully completed".

Although works on his bathroom have resumed, the tenant is not convinced the problem has been solved as he continues to live alongside thousands of flies.

Mr Edgar is surrounded by thousands of flies, making him doubt the problem has been properly resolved

"I've been coping really well after losing my leg but the fact that someone can treat one of their tenants like this, that is more hurting than anything," Mr Edgar said.

He has since returned to his home but has no functioning bathroom while the wet room transformation takes place.

His builder, Mr Sard, said the work was "not nice" and raised concerns about the rest of the property.

A spokesperson for Orbit said: "We fully appreciated it can be challenging to manage home adaptions and we have been liaising with Mr Edgar and his privately arranged contractor to help support his project".