A mum and daughter have had to sleep outside due to the overpowering stench of sewage leaking under the floor of their bungalow
SWNS
2023-09-28
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A mum and daughter have had to sleep outside due to the overpowering stench of sewage leaking under the floor of their bungalow.
Linda Porter says the pair have been feeling ill since the stink began on Friday.
The 51-year-old explained: “My neighbours have all been in, they've got as far as the front door, took one breath, gagged, and carried on gagging as they turned back out to walk out.”
The mum says she first contacted Golding Homes about the property at Bethersden Court, Maidstone in Kent on Saturday and explained the situation but was told they wouldn’t be able to send anyone out until this week.
The company has apologised for the distress caused and is arranging for cameras to be put down the drain to find out the cause of the problem.
And eventually on Wednesday night they put the pair up in a Premier Inn.
Linda said: “As there was no visual sewage, just the smell, they said someone would deal with it on Monday.
“We were unable to eat indoors because the smell was so bad so we went out to get a takeaway but I got a call from my next door neighbour to say the drainage company had turned up.
“They inspected the manhole and said the sewage under the floor of our property was something to do with drainage.
“The worker came inside and smelt it and said it was really bad and that they needed to get cameras put down there but that it needed to go through Golding Homes.”
The pair “put up” with the smell for the rest of the weekend but mainly sat outside the property in a communal area.
On Monday morning, Linda was told by Golding Homes that the issue had been raised with Capital Drainage and they would be in touch.
After hearing nothing and not being able to get in touch with them herself, she contacted the housing company again later that day and says she was told to wait.
She explained: “The smell was absolutely horrendous. I contacted my GP because me and my daughter were and still are feeling quite ill.”
On Tuesday afternoon, they both attended their appointments at The Mote Medical Practice and say they were told to get out of the property as soon as possible.
Tara, 17, used to haemorrhage from different parts of her body and has a weak immune system as a result.
Linda also suffers from health issues including osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia and high blood pressure.
She said: “The doctor said to me they couldn’t express how soon we needed to contact Golding Homes, more so for my daughter’s safety.
“They said she could go to sleep in that house and she may not wake up.”
After contacting the housing company again, Linda says she was told someone would be in touch, but they were not sure when.
On Tuesday, the pair slept in the communal garden all night as they “couldn’t be in the house”.
Linda said: “If we do go in there, we have to have all the doors and windows open and be in and out as soon as possible. The smell is in every single room.
Linda Porter says the pair have been feeling ill since the stink began on Friday.
The 51-year-old explained: “My neighbours have all been in, they've got as far as the front door, took one breath, gagged, and carried on gagging as they turned back out to walk out.”
The mum says she first contacted Golding Homes about the property at Bethersden Court, Maidstone in Kent on Saturday and explained the situation but was told they wouldn’t be able to send anyone out until this week.
The company has apologised for the distress caused and is arranging for cameras to be put down the drain to find out the cause of the problem.
And eventually on Wednesday night they put the pair up in a Premier Inn.
Linda said: “As there was no visual sewage, just the smell, they said someone would deal with it on Monday.
“We were unable to eat indoors because the smell was so bad so we went out to get a takeaway but I got a call from my next door neighbour to say the drainage company had turned up.
“They inspected the manhole and said the sewage under the floor of our property was something to do with drainage.
“The worker came inside and smelt it and said it was really bad and that they needed to get cameras put down there but that it needed to go through Golding Homes.”
The pair “put up” with the smell for the rest of the weekend but mainly sat outside the property in a communal area.
On Monday morning, Linda was told by Golding Homes that the issue had been raised with Capital Drainage and they would be in touch.
After hearing nothing and not being able to get in touch with them herself, she contacted the housing company again later that day and says she was told to wait.
She explained: “The smell was absolutely horrendous. I contacted my GP because me and my daughter were and still are feeling quite ill.”
On Tuesday afternoon, they both attended their appointments at The Mote Medical Practice and say they were told to get out of the property as soon as possible.
Tara, 17, used to haemorrhage from different parts of her body and has a weak immune system as a result.
Linda also suffers from health issues including osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia and high blood pressure.
She said: “The doctor said to me they couldn’t express how soon we needed to contact Golding Homes, more so for my daughter’s safety.
“They said she could go to sleep in that house and she may not wake up.”
After contacting the housing company again, Linda says she was told someone would be in touch, but they were not sure when.
On Tuesday, the pair slept in the communal garden all night as they “couldn’t be in the house”.
Linda said: “If we do go in there, we have to have all the doors and windows open and be in and out as soon as possible. The smell is in every single room.
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