NI Water appeal after ‘wipe’ out at Christie Park

NI Water is appealing to customers in the Coleraine area to bag and bin their bathroom rubbish such as wipes and sanitary items after hundreds of wet wipes recently washed up at Christie Park.
NI Water’s Brian Donaghy, Cllr William McCandless and Andrew McIlwaine, NI Water in Christie Park where out of sewer flooding has occurred due to the flushing of wipes and other inappropriate itemsNI Water’s Brian Donaghy, Cllr William McCandless and Andrew McIlwaine, NI Water in Christie Park where out of sewer flooding has occurred due to the flushing of wipes and other inappropriate items
NI Water’s Brian Donaghy, Cllr William McCandless and Andrew McIlwaine, NI Water in Christie Park where out of sewer flooding has occurred due to the flushing of wipes and other inappropriate items

It is not the first time this has happened but NI Water and local Councillor William McCandless are appealing for it to be the last.

NI Water’s Wastewater Network’s Area Manager, Brian Donaghy explained: “Out of sewer flooding at Christie Park is a long standing issue but NI Water can only solve part of the problem.

“The sewer is being considered for upgrade as part of NI Water’s PC21 business plan, however the main problem here is the flushing of inappropriate items such as wipes and sanitary products.

“The solution is very simple, if those items are not flushed then they can’t end up in the environment so we are appealing to customers to please only flush the 3p’s, pee, poo and toilet paper; everything else needs to go in the bin.

“If we all make changes to our flushing habits, then incidents like this, and those where we see an overflowing manhole, can be avoided in the future.

“In the last ten years, we have spent over £1.5 billion investing in water and wastewater infrastructure, but no amount of investment will completely stop blocked pipes or these items polluting our environment.”

Cllr William McCandless thanked staff from NI Water and Causeway Coast and Glens Council who cleaned up at Christie Park after the flash flood incident on July 4.