New home nightmare as huge emergency sewage pipe flows through housing estate

  • Graham Stothard visited the "eighth wonder of the world" for ITV News Anglia

People living at a new housing development say they have had enough of living with an enormous overground sewage pipe which has been installed just outside their front doors.

The huge pipe at the Stanton Cross development in Wellingborough was put above ground after a section of the underground system was found to be leaking.

It runs 500 metres from a nearby pumping station, up a hill, around a corner, over a road and back into the ground.

Anglian Water said the one-metre diameter pipe which cuts across the Stanton Cross estate was a temporary arrangement while repairs were carried out - but residents have been left seething.

The vast overground sewage pipe rears up in front of some of the new houses Credit: ITV Anglia

Dominic Aloia, who lives on the estate, said he was not happy.

"Don't get me wrong - it's a fantastic bit of engineering. But do I want it outside my house? No.

"Any family member that's come round, [they say] 'Oh, my God. What is that about? How can you live with that outside your window?'

"And also, when you drive down past it, it's filthy, it's covered in mud. It just looks absolutely awful."

The pipe went up in mid-December following the discovery of two leaks underground.

Vlogger David Purnell lives nearby and was among the first to film it.

He said: "I was shocked - really shocked. I've never seen anything like that on that kind of scale, especially when they have it right on this new build.

"I mean, these houses have been up for a year-and-a-half. So to see that, I did chuckle a little bit. And then of course, you think of the residents. God bless them."

The pipe runs in front of houses through the new estate Credit: ITV Anglia

Regan Harris from Anglian Water said the pipe was needed to keep services running.

"We've been in direct contact with the local residents right from the beginning and we're very thankful for their patience while we've been undertaking this work. But it's very necessary," she said.

Residents are keeping their sense of humour, and have likened the pipe to the Berlin Wall, the Mario brother video games and even the eighth wonder of the world.

But it has prompted serious concerns about future development in the area.

Councillor Marion Turner-Hawes, of Wellingborough Town Council, said: "This is a big development on the eastern side of Wellingborough.

"I think it's up to 10,000 houses planned here, and this is fairly early on in this development and we've got literally a massive issue around the infrastructure.

"This is unbelievable. It could be the eighth wonder of the world, but it's a very, very strange thing to see in any community."

An aerial shot shows the scale of the temporary pipe running through the estate. Credit: ITV News Anglia

Stanton Cross Developments, which is behind the scheme in Wellingborough, said the overground pipe was due to Anglian Water's emergency works.

The company acknowledged it was a very challenging situation that was affecting both residents, and the housing developers on the site.

Anglian Water said the pipe problems would be resolved by the end of March.

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