'Do not swim' warning issued on Exmouth beach after sewage pipe bursts
Swimmers are being advised to stay out of the water on a beach in Exmouth after a sewage pipe burst in the town.
The burst was in a pipe near to an RNLI station on private land near Maer Lane wastewater treatment works.
South West Water says it is "urgently" working to fix the issue.
A red flag has been put up the beach to stop bathers from entering the water due to the risk of pollution from the sewage.
East Devon District Council voted in February to say it had no confidence in South West Water.
Its leader Paul Arnott has today described this latest spill as being a "historic new low" for the water company, saying it is impacting not only residents but tens of thousands of tourists.
Cllr Arnott told ITV News: "The major sewage spill at The Maer last night represents an historic new low.
"Despite multiple reassurances from South West Water that they have Exmouth under control, they simply do not. This incident not only impacted our residents but also the tens of thousands of tourists that visit Exmouth.
“Our officers and the Environment Agency attended the site as soon as the spill was reported and took direct action to advise residents and visitors not to bathe in the water. I thank them for their rapid response. Due to the severity of the spill, today we have had to ‘red flag’ bathing until we are satisfied that any sewage has dispersed. We are also closely monitoring the impact on one of our car parks.
“As a council, we are meeting South West Water following the vote of no confidence and the ongoing issues with the company. But I urge them to think about their actions and agree a way forward to ensure this does not happen again.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and will hold South West Water to account.”
What has South West Water said about Exmouth sewage spill?
South West Water said: "We are using tankers to transport flows away from the burst location to the treatment works to allow our teams to work on the damaged pipe.
"We will be installing an overland pipe as a temporary solution until a permanent fix can be carried out.
"To ensure the safety of our teams and road users, we have temporarily closed Maer Lane and we would like to thank local residents and visitors for their patience."