With the Met Office issuing further weather warnings for more rain across the Midlands over the next few days, Severn Trent has said it is facing “significantly more incidents of flooding” than it would normally expect at this time of year.

The company is currently working around the clock to deal with the problem and has pulled in extra staff and resources.

Natallie Welch, customer contact manager for Severn Trent, said:

“We were aware that this weather was coming and we’ve worked hard to get ready for it.  We’ve got extra staff on the phones in our call centre and additional teams available out and about across the region, working round the clock to deal with flooding issues.  We’ve also got teams keeping an eye on those areas that we know have a high risk of flooding.”

“Unfortunately, in stormy weather, the drains and sewers often have significantly more water flowing through them.  When we get a lot of rain in one go, it has a hard time sinking into the ground; so it just runs off the surface and goes directly into drains and sewers.”

Severn Trent is advising customers whose properties are  flooded to check whether it is simply rainwater or sewage that has come from an overflowing sewer, possibly through a manhole cover.

The water company  has asked customers to be patient if it is rainwater, explaining that the flooding should subside when it stops raining, although it can take up to four hours for water to drain away.

 However, where sewage is escaping Severn Trent said this is a priority and the company would get a team out to help as quickly as possible.

Severn Trent also advised that customers concerned about flooding from drains and gullies in the road should call the local council as they are responsible for road drainage; if the flooding is coming from a river or stream, they should get in touch with the Environment Agency.

Natallie Welch continued:

“Calls into Severn Trent are high at the moment and customers may have to wait longer than usual for a response, so following the advice above, or visiting our website stwater.co.uk could save you some time.  If the flooding is due to rainwater, there is no need to call unless it is still there some time after the rain has stopped.

“We’d like to reassure our customers that we are doing everything that we can do deal with flooding issues as quickly as possible and ask them for their continued patience during this time.”

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