Over 750 sewage spills after torrential rain hits

HEAVY rain overwhelmed the North East's drainage network over the weekend before last - with sewage “outflows” into rivers and the North Sea triggered more than 750 times.

- SAM VOLPE

Analysis of open data shared by UK water companies found outflows were spilling water a total of 782 times over Saturday, July 19 and Sunday, July 20.

That accounts for occasions when heavy rain triggers “storm overflows” which are used - Northumbrian Water explained - to manage the sewer network and protect customers’ homes from flooding.

The water firm said that the water that is discharged was a “heavily diluted mixture of storm water and wastewater” - and was not simply untreated sewage.

Northumbrian Water also said that its storm overflows “on average” operate less than those of other regional water companies.

The firm added it had invested heavily in upgrades to its network including £1.7bn on its “most ambitious environmental programme ever”.