Amber weather warning: flood alert
The Met Office have escalated their rain alert from yellow to amber.
Please see below for an update from United Utilities:
United Utilities has continued to make good progress to return Fleetwood wastewater treatment works to full operation after a pipe which carries cleaned and treated water 5km out to sea fractured within the grounds of the plant.
While teams work 24/7 to get the engineering fix in place, the Fylde Coast wastewater system is operating at a reduced capacity. Due to thunderstorms and heavy rain on Sunday evening, storm overflows operated along the Fylde Coast tonight.
The current advice to avoid swimming at the following locations remains in place:
Bispham
Blackpool Central
Blackpool North
Blackpool South
Cleveleys beach
Fleetwood
St Annes
St Annes North
Work is well underway on the major engineering activity to construct a bypass around the fractured pipe which is around 9m underground. More than 2,000 metres of pipeline has already been lifted into place and is being bolted together. When the bypass is up and running the treatment works will be able to run at full capacity again, reducing the need for storm overflows to operate in the event of further heavy rain.
Mark Garth, United Utilities Wastewater Director, said: “We are working around the clock to get things back to normal. Good progress is being made and we are doing all we can to ensure that the wastewater treatment system can operate as it should.
‘We know people will be disappointed they are being advised to avoid swimming in the sea right now but we will continue to work with the Environment Agency and local authorities to get to a position where that advice can be lifted as soon as possible.’
Original news item:
United Utilities is carrying out urgent repair work to a burst pipe which carries water after it has been treated and cleaned from Fleetwood wastewater treatment works to the sea.
The treatment works is currently running at a reduced rate while engineers plan and carry out the repair work to the pipe which lies nine metres underground. Due to the location and complexity of the repair and to ensure the work is carried out safely, this is expected to take some time while engineers install 2000 metres of temporary pumps and overland pipework.
United Utilities is balancing storage levels in the wastewater network along the Fylde Coast and using tankers around the clock to help reduce pressure on the site by transporting wastewater to other treatment sites.
Unfortunately, during last night’s short and sharp thunderstorms that saw nearly 40mm of rain fall in around two hours, the system temporarily reached full capacity at sites in Blackpool and untreated sewage, mixed with rainwater, was released into the sea.
Blackpool Council, Fylde Council and Wyre Council are advising that the public should not swim at the following beaches until further notice:
Bispham
Blackpool Central
Blackpool North
Blackpool South
Cleveleys beach
Fleetwood
St Annes
St Annes North
Mark Garth, Wastewater Director, at United Utilities, said: “This is a very unusual incident and our teams are working around the clock to minimise any impact on the environment. The burst occurred on a large pipe which is deep underground, making the repair complex and challenging. We are installing temporary overland pipework to bypass the burst pipe so that the treatment plant can continue to operate while the repair work is carried out.
“The reduced capacity at the treatment works and in our network as a result of this burst meant there was less storage available than normal to deal with the heavy rainfall last night. This resulted in storm overflows operating. We are working closely with the Environment Agency and local councils as we respond to this.”
Information on all 424 designated bathing water sites and any forecasted drops in water quality are published on the Swimfo: Find a Bathing Water website. This provides immediate access to information on every bathing water in England.
Construction of the temporary overland pipework means that the neighbouring Fleetwood Marsh Nature Reserve is unfortunately closed to the public until further notice.
