River Wear at Chester-le-Street during last week's flood
Residents are being invited to find out more about a multi-million pound plan to reduce the risk of flooding in Chester le Street.
Northumbrian Water is investing £2.7 million to improve the sewerage network around the Garden Farm Estate and Ropery Lane areas of the town.
The improvement work is due to begin on August 10 and will take up to seven months to complete.
Residents affected by the work are invited to find out more at a customer consultation session to be held on July 27 at Chester Le Street Cricket Club, Ropery Lane, between 3.00pm and 8.00pm.
In times of extremely heavy rainfall the sewerage network has struggled to cope with the volume of storm water, which has resulted in flooding to properties on Coniston Close, Grasmere Road and Elterwater Road on the Garden Farm Estate, and a further 47 properties on Ivanhoe Terrace, Benson Street, Relton Terrace, Red Rose Terrace, Ropery Lane, Lumley Terrace, Lambton Street and Broadwood View.
Brian Ford, project manager for the Northumbrian Water scheme, said: “We appreciate that flooding is distressing for customers and so reducing this risk is one of Northumbrian Water’s priorities.
“The work will involve upsizing more than 2.5 km of sewer pipe, as well as installing a storm water storage tank at Coniston Close. The tank can hold more than 1.2 million litres of water in times of heavy rainfall which will be returned to the sewerage network, to be treated, after the storm.
“We are also installing two combined sewer overflows at Beverley Gardens and Chester Park. Combined sewer overflows are consented by the Environment Agency to discharge diluted wastewater into watercourses in times of very heavy rainfall. This further protects properties and surrounding land from flooding.”