WORRIED residents are calling for a housebuilder to take urgent action after flooding left hundreds of people unable to go in or out of their estate.
Families living in Meon Way Gardens near Long Marston found themselves trapped after severe flooding left the only access road, Langate Fields, completely submerged.
The incident last Monday (6th January) morning, made many late for work, college or school.
As the estate is not complete, the roads have not been adopted by the county council, leaving developer Persimmon responsible. Planning is in place for a second, emergency-vehicle-only access road, but that won’t open until the scheme is completed, which is years away. In the meantime, there’s widespread concern that if a pregnant woman had gone into labour, or an elderly person or child was taken seriously ill and needed an ambulance, it could have ended in tragedy.
This is the second time the road has flooded – it also happened just over a year ago.
The submerged road.
Chef Eugene Mccluskey, who lives in Meon Way Gardens, found himself unable to get out of the estate to go to work at 5.30am.
He said: “The water was really high and it was impassable, so I called the fire brigade. They tried to unblock the culvert but couldn’t because the water was still rising. They then got highways to close the road, because they weren’t sure whether any grids had come up which would cause a wider hazard to vehicles and people.
“Me sat there not able to get out to work is on the smaller side in the grand scheme of things, but what if there was an emergency and someone couldn’t get through?”
He added: “As a resident, I believe Persimmon should do something. It’s a problem that needn’t exist and could be fixed relatively easily.”
Mother-of-two Louise Francis was another resident stopped from leaving the estate. She told the Herald: “I wasn’t going to risk writing my car off. We had to wait for it [the water] to subside and I managed to get out about 9.15am, making my son late for school and myself late for work.
“It could have been a serious life-or-death situation.”
Resident Karen Mansfield pointed out: “There’s currently only one road, Langate Fields, into the Meon Way Gardens estate. We have lived here 18 months and it’s the second time in that time that the road has been inaccessible due to flooding. We definitely need another road.”
Families praised the fire crew at Pebworth for their response.
A spokesperson for Hereford & Worcester Fire and Rescue Service said: “A large flood was completely blocking access to Meon Way Gardens. The crew attempted to unblock the drain using small tools. All drains were checked and rodded but there were no blockages with flooding caused by water from fields.”
A spokesperson for Persimmon said: “We have worked closely with Wychavon District Council throughout the planning and development process at our Meon Way Gardens community. In line with the planning authority’s stipulations, the site has one main access via an island as well as a second access which is to be used by emergency vehicles only.
“The flooding came as part of extreme weather events which were also seen across the country. The site has had no previous issues with either flooding or access, with all plans approved and in line with the flooding authority’s guidelines.”