It's disgusting! Raw sewage leak by shop

Severn Trent Water, who have attended the Fernwood Drive scene on more than one occasion, said the leaking sewage had been caused by a blocked sewer pipe and that they had worked round the clock to fix the issue.

But people living in the area have labelled the waste as a 'health hazard', insisting that it's still there and keeps overflowing.

Local resident Philip Chalmers, who visits the area every day to buy his morning paper, said: "It's disgusting. There's raw sewage out on the footpath and it's a health hazard, especially to children.

"Severn Trent have been out several times but it keeps overflowing."

The sewage is located at the side of the My Local convenience store on Fernwood Drive.

Michaela Sparkes, the team leader at the store, said: "Severn Trent have been out four or five times now to sort it out but it keeps happening.

"It's disgusting but our customers haven't really been effected by it, we're keeping a close eye on it and we phone Severn Trent every time it gets bad."

Cannock Chase Council are aware of the issue.

Kirsteen Miles, a spokesperson for the Council, said: "The council were made aware of the situation on Monday morning. The water contractor cleared the blockage on the 29th December however have recognised that the clean-up was a bigger job than they anticipated. The Council's Environmental Officers met with the water contractor first thing Tuesday morning to clean up the area."

Grace Marren, a spokesperson for Severn Trent Water, said: "We were called out to sewer flooding at Fernwood Drive in Rugeley last weekend.

"The flooding had been caused by a blockage in the sewer pipe so we've cleared the blockage, and worked around the clock over the last few days to clean up the area to get everything back to normal for residents and local businesses.

"We found that the blockage had been caused by a build up of sanitary products in the sewer pipe. This happens when people flush them down the toilet instead of disposing of them in the bin.

"We'd encourage everyone to bin things like sanitary products, nappies and wipes. The drains that take waste water away from homes are only a few inches wide and are only meant to take water, toilet roll and human waste."