Keyham WW2 bomb: Woman's garden 'wrecked' after bomb disposal

The garden where the bomb was found and debris from the removal operation, which has since been removed

A Keyham woman, who was impacted by the bomb incident in Plymouth, said there were no plans for her garden to be repaired.

Oliva, who did not want her surname shared, explained her home was used as a base for the bomb disposal unit.

Olivia, who lives next door to the house on St Michael Avenue where the bomb was found, said she is reminded of the incident due to her garden.

Plymouth City Council said the clear-up work was completed on 5 March.

'Slowly getting there'

"I sort of forget about it when I'm in the house, we have started to get bits a piece back together," Olivia told BBC Radio Devon.

"The carpets have been cleaned, but when I look out of the window, I'm reminded of everything that is still yet to come. We had a bit of a breakdown in front of the council which made them think they needed to do something."

She explained how she was told by the council to find someone to clean the carpets, and covered the cost.

The council said: "Whilst this damage was not caused by us, the council has bent over backwards to help support the residents"

Olivia said: "The guttering was mended after we had the leak, and the dining room window was fixed after that leaked during the bad weather.

"That was forgotten about, I had to call again. Someone was sent out fast which was good, but we had to pay for the boiler ourselves,"

Olivia added that she had not been contacted since the weekend regarding the garden. She said her back wall in the garden was knocked down during the event.

She said they were waiting for their assessor to visit from their insurer. She also said she has spoken with Labour MP Luke Pollard.

'I cannot focus'

"All we want is for our garden to be back the way it was and if there was a group of people, it would not take that long," she said.

"I'm not working again this week because there is too much to do."

She described feeling "anxious" about when she invites clients back to her house as they will "naturally want to see" the damage.

Olivia said: "I have to relive that every day. I have sympathy for anyone who goes through burglary because that is the only way I can describe it. It was such bad weather, there was mud everywhere.

"It just feels so violating. It was not what I gave my keys up for."

Plymouth City Council said it was in contact with affected residents and was waiting for the homeowners' insurers to give them a final position to see if further support was needed.

It said: "It is not the council's role to pay for repairs to private properties following an emergency. The council has a responsibility to support communities as they recover and signpost people to where they can access relevant help and support."

The council said: "Whilst this damage was not caused by us, the council has bent over backwards to help support the residents...

"We have installed temporary fencing in their gardens, offered one household a two-day deep cleaning service, paid for their carpet and sofa to be cleaned, offered vouchers to replace broken items and for food, repaired gutting and cleaned out blocked drains, fixed windows and offered to arrange the repair of a broken boiler.

"Our community liaison officer has reached out to all the residents this week to see how they are and will continue to assist where they can."