Pub's frustration over sinkhole leaking sewage

Staff at a Derbyshire pub have voiced their frustration over a sinkhole which was spewing sewage and closed a road opposite the venue.

An underground sewage pipe collapsed at around 13:40 BST on Wednesday, causing a sinkhole to open up in Brook End, Repton.

Derbyshire Police said "gallons of oozing urine and dung" had to be removed from the road leading to The Boot Inn.

Jack Bowler, bar manager at The Boot Inn, said: "We’ve had some flooding on the road before so it’s a continuation of problems really."

In a social media post, officers said: "The road will remain closed for several days, whilst urgent repairs to the pipework and tarmac is completed."

Mr Bowler wants to let customers know the pub is still open, despite the main access road, Brook End, being closed.

"Luckily, there is an access road to us so we are still open, which is what we are trying to get across to people.

"It’s not been ideal and the odour hasn’t been great. It’s an inconvenience to us but we have sympathy with the residents who live close by."

Head Chef at The Boot, Stewart Langdell, said he noticed flooding on the street prior to the sinkhole opening.

He added: "It's quite frustrating as we noticed a leak for a few days before the sinkhole appearing and it will have a big impact on our trade."

Mr Bowler also noticed water coming down the road earlier in the week.

"It was not a nice smell to have going down the road over the past week", said Mr Bowler.

On the incident, Zelia Lockett, waste team manager at Severn Trent, which has been removing the waste, said: “We’re sorry for the disruption as our teams continue to work hard following a collapse to one our sewer pipes in Brook End, Repton.

"We’ve got equipment on site that means the network can flow as usual, so our teams can look to begin safely repairing the pipe.

"Due to the location of the pipe, we have closed a section of the road with a small diversion in place, but we can assure everyone we’ll be working hard to get everything back to normal as quickly as possible.”

Follow BBC Derby on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected] or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.