Essex beach closed after sewage leak

A beach in Essex remains closed after sewage contaminated its waters.

More than a mile of Southend-on-sea beach, including Southend Pier, is cordoned off to the public for “environmental reasons”, after flooding and sewage spillages in the area.

Roads near the seafront saw raw sewage seeping out of drains on Thursday, and local residents described the smell as “disgusting”.

The cause is thought to be a large sinkhole at Southend Sewage Treatment Works, which damaged the facility’s main sewer pipe.

Localised flooding and heavy rain in the area over recent days is also thought to have worsened the problem.

A spokesperson for Anglian Water told Essex Live: “Our teams are continuing to work around the clock to repair a major issue with one of the sewers that feeds Southend-on-Sea’s Water Recycling Centre.

“Our main sewer pipe is damaged at the point where it comes into the Water Recycling Centre.”

They said an incident like this has not occurred for at least a decade, and they are working continuously to fix the sewage issue.

They added: “Repairing this is a major engineering challenge, made harder by how deep under the ground it is.

“We know we need to work quickly, but it’s even more important that we work safely.”

Over the weekend, work progressed as a new network of pipes and pumps was installed by Anglian Water to re-direct sewage. A fleet of tankers are also clearing waste from the area.

Anglian Water said that “waste water is being spilled into the sea, in order to reduce the risk of people’s homes and gardens from flooding.”

The situation is being monitored, and parts of the beach remain closed until further notice.

Southend will soon gain city status, long championed by local MP Sir David Amess, who was killed in a stabbing attack during a constituency surgery session this month.