A Dundee barber has claimed raw sewage seeping from a drain in Hilltown is affecting her business.
Denise Black (45), who runs Dewar’s barber, said waste has been flowing down the street outside her shop since last week.
She said most people now have to sidestep the smelly overflow or use the other side of the street to avoid it.
“The drain has been like that for a week,” she explained. “It has happened a few times over the last year it seems to happen every time it rains. It is disgusting.
“We are losing out on customers because people are not coming past the shop anymore. There are other shops in the street, too, and everyone is saying how bad it is.”
She continued, “One of my customers has come in and her trousers were covered in it. People can’t walk on the pavement. People are walking on the other side to avoid it because the smell is that bad.
“Kids are running through it and splashing thinking it’s water and there are old bits of toilet roll lying around everywhere.”
Denise called Scottish Water to inform them of the problem after the drain began leaking last Wednesday. After a number of calls, she was told contractors would be sent out to address the issue immediately.
She added, “I feel like if it was somewhere like Reform Street or Broughty Ferry and not the Hilltown, it would have been fixed properly.”
A spokesman for Scottish Water said last night that contractors would be attending the street today to examine the problem.
“Following reports of a choked drain in Hilltown, Dundee, we are sending out a squad tomorrow to unblock the drain and to inspect the network and to identify what is causing it to overflow.
“Frequently the cause of these overflowing drains is sanitary items, cotton buds, nappies etc in the waste water network which should not be flushed down the toilet.”