Oxford flooding: Gardens fill up with raw sewage after rain

More than a dozen gardens in a street have been filled with raw sewage after drains overflowed during heavy rainfall.

Residents of Campbell Road, Oxford, saw floods 2ft [60cm] deep in their gardens on Sunday, several of which include sheds and home offices.

Hugh Warwick described the scene as a "complete disaster".

Thames Water said engineers were being dispatched to the area to fix the problem.

Mr Warwick said when he went to help his neighbour rescue things from his office they were faced with "toilet wipes and goodness knows what else and it was above my knees".

He added: "His office has only recently gone in and because of lockdown so many people are relying on that sort of thing. It was heartbreaking."

He said during heavy rain the brook at the end of the road often bursts its banks, but had not done so on this occasion.

"It wasn't overflowing… this was the foul sewer system having a massive ingress of rain water, which is a Thames Water failing," he explained.

Fellow resident James Carpenter was also affected by the flooding, and was able to paddle his boat to his garden cabin.

A spokesman for Thames Water said: "We're aware of flooding in OX4 due to the recent heavy rainfall, with the sheer volume of water overwhelming the sewer system.

"Our engineers are on their way to the scene and we'll be doing everything we can to support those who have been affected."

The company has called in extra staff following the heavy rain overnight.