Man's Gloucester home flooded for 40 years due to outdated sewerage system

When there is heavy rain, Mr Barber says he has water coming up from the sewage manhole at the back of the house

A man in Gloucester says an outdated sewerage system has been causing his home to flood for the past 40 years.

Brian Barber, 79, said his home was flooded the day after he moved into his home in Hempstead 41 years ago.

He said he feared the problem would worsen as hundreds of new houses were set to be connected to the "antiquated" sewerage system.

Severn Trent water company said the flooding was caused by sewer misuse and hydraulic overload.

Mr Barber says he plans his life around the weather, if heavy rain is forecast he stays home to deal with the flooding

Mr Barber told the Local Democracy Reporting Service there was a pinch point in the pipe beneath the road near Hempsted Post Office, and when it rained heavily it caused a blockage in the system that backed up to his home.

Sewage water overflows in his back garden and he is left with black stains on the ground and small pieces of toilet paper to clear up every time it floods.

Mr Barber said: "The complete sewerage system in Hempsted is well past its sell by date", adding there were about 4,000 houses all using the same dated structure.

Mr Barber said he feared the problem could worsen with the addition of scores of new houses being added to the sewerage system

A Severn Trent spokesperson said they were sorry to hear about the issues Mr Barber had experienced, and were actively working towards a solution.

"Our network is operating as we'd expect, however the problems have been caused by sewer misuse, where we've found a build-up of wipes in the sewer pipe.

"We've also found that hydraulic overload happens, which is when sudden, heavy rain occurs that can't get into the network quick enough, causing rain water flooding which then subsides. "

City councillor Paul Toleman had requested a planning condition that 185 homes proposed at Hill Farm should be connected directly to the nearby Netherdige sewage treatment works rather than the antiquated sewerage system.

"I considered this a reasonable request which would prevent more unwanted sewage coming up in Hempsted residents' gardens," he said.

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