CHRISTMAS was "ruined" for the residents of a lane flooded with sewage.
Last week the Advertiser reported that Water Lane in Bookham had been reduced to a quagmire due to tankers pumping wastewater from a collapsed sewer 24 hours a day.
Residents Stephen and Diane Poole had pleaded with Thames Water to solve the problem before the holidays.
The utility company told them the sewer had been fixed, prompting Mole Valley District Council contractors to clear the lane on Christmas Eve. But after heavy rain on Christmas Day, the sewer overflowed again.
Mr Poole said: "It disgusts us that these people in their cosy offices ignore our plight whilst making huge profits from their customers.
"It is a pity that they cannot be stripped of their franchise like rail companies, or that their senior management cannot be held personally to account. If they are fined by Ofwat they will simply add it to our bills."
A tanker got stuck on a grass verge overnight on December 25, destroying a resident's drainage ditch. Constant use by heavy tankers also left the road with a 40ft by 3ft pothole.
"It has ruined our Christmas and there is no end in sight," said Mr Poole.
"The next day was a scene of devastation, as if a Chieftain tank had driven down the lane. The roadside drainage ditch is completely destroyed and the verge opposite unrecognisable."
The street was cleaned by the council on Friday after roots blocking the sewer were cleared. But the Pooles were told by one of the engineers the pipe needed replacing altogether.
"He said it was not that expensive a job to replace that section of the sewer," said Mr Poole. "They are spending thousands of pounds a day on tankers and if you think they've been here since December 12 you can tot that up to quite a large expenditure on just keeping the problem at bay."
Thames Water spokesman Craig Rance responded by saying: "While of course we regret mud on the road, we have a must-do job to get on with here. Our tankers need to access a sewage pumping station which has been overwhelmed by the recent heavy rain.
"We're very sorry for the inconvenience this is causing, but if we didn't do this there would be sewage flooding homes, roads and fields, which would be much worse."
