Residents were counting the cost as a large clear-up operation was under way today due to flooding caused when a water main burst leaving one side of the A38 being closed for more than 24 hours.
Homes along the A38 near Alrewas and Barton under Needwood were flooded after the main, which runs under the dual carriageway bust around 10.30pm on Sunday, March 25. Seven homes were hit by flooding, which wrecked furniture and carpets. Gardens were also badly affected.
Both sides of the A38 were initially closed, but the southbound side later reopened. The incident caused major traffic chaos for motorists.
Residents and staff from water firm South Staffs Water were clearing up today, Tuesday, March 27.
The Travelodge hotel on the northbound side of the A38 had to transfer any arriving guests to its sister premises on the southbound side of the route as it's car park was hit. The chain even made its toilets available for use by residents hit by flooding Highways Agency engineers working on the leak during the incident.
Marc Tipper, receptionist at Travelodge, said: “Anyone that was due to arrive at the hotel was told to go to the south side hotel. Anyone that was here was ok. The water for us only reached the car park so we weren’t really too affected but I felt bad for the neighbours. I think we are a little bit higher than them so no water reached us.
“We didn’t really have much trouble here getting in and out. The Highways Agency allowed people to get in and out.
“We opened our doors to the workers and neighbours to use our toilets. We offered anything we could. It has never been like this in the two years I have been here.”
The Burton Mail also spoke to Albert McWilliams and his wife, Glenys, for the second time in two days and learned they are yet to find out what the cost of clear-up work at their home will be after their kitchen and garden were damaged for the second time since 2012.
Glenys said: “We have no idea about the cost yet. South Staffs Water came out very quickly. The rep then came out Monday afternoon to make a rough assessment. But we don’t know what the insurance will be yet.
“They came out on Sunday at about 7pm, we were quite impressed.”
However, they wonder if the flood might have been avoided after the couple had reported water trickling on the road nine days earlier. Water firm South Staff Water has said it did respond to the call and work had been planned, but in the meantime the main bust.
Mrs McWilliams added: “They have been exceptional since they have been here. They are cleaning the paths at the moment.”
Their 83-year-old neighbour who has been the worst affected is now living with her daughter, after being forced to attend hospital for a new supply for her medication when she was unable to reach her fridge to pick up her prescriptions due to flood water.
Another neighbour, farmer Julian Allen, 70, also saw some of the ground floor rooms of his home flooded and has seen a expensive Persian rug damaged in the process.
He said: “I saw it around 8.30pm. It came down the road into my drive and flooded the shed and the field.
“By about 12.30am it had come in the house and I was fed up of sweeping so went to bed at about 3.30am.
“It has never been as bad as this before. It happened in 2012 but not this bad. That time some of my neighbours lived in the Travelodge for about six months
“I don’t know the cost but it could be about £4,000 in insurance costs.”
“You want to move because it makes you feel unsettled here. It is quite upsetting.”
Labourer, Rod Mansell, who lives close to the A38, had his water supply switched off during the incident and said he was forced to take a day off work.
The 50-year-old said: “My cottage wasn’t affected but my neighbours were. But I have had to take a day off to get washing done as the water had been switched off all night. I didn’t know it was going to be turned off.
“It is a terrible place to be living because of the traffic
"A neighbour had to bring me a bottle of water round.”
The northbound side of the A38 was closed from Alrewas to Barton-under-Needwood from 10.30pm on Sunday, March 25, causing major disruption for motorists. The road was closed for more than 24 hours, re-opening this morning, Tuesday, March 27.
A spokesman for South Staffs Water said it had been unclear initially whether the source of the water was local run-off from a sewer or from the company’s water main and it had arranged for drain clearing works, which were carried out.
The flooding affected the A38 between the A513 for Alrewas and Tamworth turn off and B5016 for Barton and the Walton. Initially both sides of the dual carriageway were closed as water gushed on to it as the main bust.
The southbound side was re-opened last night, Monday, March 26, at around 6.25am.
A spokesman for South Staffs Water previously has apologised for the inconvenience while it was repairing the 18-inch pipe.
South Staffs Water completed the repair to the water main under the A38 by 3pm on Monday, March 26, leaving Highways England to complete the reinstatement of the road surface and re-open the road, which was completed by approximately 6am on Tuesday, March 27.
A spokesman said: "A small number of properties in the immediate locality of the burst were unfortunately flooded following the failure of the 18-inch water main within the northbound carriageway of the A38. Our priority is to ensure that any damage to these customers’ properties is remedied as soon as possible. We have had teams on site again on Tuesday assisting with the clear up and we have been working with our insurers to return things to normal as quickly as possible.
"There has been some discussion in the media regarding how long we have been aware of this leak, and how we have responded. We were made aware of a potential leak on Friday, March 16, and dispatched a member of staff on the same day to investigate.
Following the recent cold snap, there was a lot of surface water in the area at the time, and we were working hard to understand whether the visible water reported was from our water main, from a Severn Trent sewer or from localised surface water run-off.
To investigate further, we needed to close a lane of the A38 to allow our teams to work safely on what is a very fast dual carriageway. Due to the criticality of the A38, this requires significant planning with Highways England, which was ongoing at the time of the burst main on Sunday evening.
"We would like to apologise again for the inconvenience that this mains burst has caused, to both motorists and to our customers in the area, specifically those whose properties we have flooded."
