Commercial Road in Spalding has been closed with Anglian Water carrying out work on a burst main and working on a host of issues in and around the town.
Road users experienced long delays around the two bridge junction in Spalding this morning (Thursday, November 28) as Commercial Road was closed unexpectedly.
Anglian Water haven’t said how long the road will be closed for, but have said more work will need to be done once the main is repaired.
“We’ve needed to close Commercial Road for the safety of road users and our team to repair a burst rising main,” a spokesman said. “This is not related to our water supply.
“We’re sorry for the inconvenience and acknowledge that Commercial Road has needed to be closed for other repairs this year.
“As such, I wanted to assure you that after the repair has been completed, we’re looking to carry out further investigations on this part of our network.”
Lincolnshire County Council say a permit has applied for to complete work up until December 11.
Rooke’s Pets is among those businesses affected by the closure, though owner Jason Rookes said the High Street store had been told that it would be re-opened by Saturday (November 28).
Its owner Jason Rookes said: “It’s a nightmare for us as it makes it difficult for people to get to us.
“People can do so via Albion Road, but you have to come round town to get to us and you can see it’s having an effect.
“It’s already been closed two times in recent months.”
Anglian Water says it is carrying out ‘tankering’ in Spalding though it’s not confirmed if that’s related to the road closure.
“We’re using a tanker to pump wastewater out of the sewer to stop the risk of it becoming too full and overflowing,” its website states. “This is a preventative measure to protect your community and the environment until the heavy rain has eased off.
“We know tankers are large and noisy and we’re sorry for any disruption we cause while it’s in use.”
Meanwhile the company is also looking at the reasons behind water discolouring in several villages to the east of Spalding.
It’s map of affected villages (available here) says a large area around Weston, Whaplode, Moulton and Moulton Seas End is experiencing discoloured water.
“We’re really sorry but some customers may be experiencing brown, orange or yellow discoloured water due to a disturbance of iron sediments in the water main,” the website continues. “Iron in the water is harmless and is usually short lived but we are carrying out localised flushing to get it back to normal.”
An Environment Agency ‘Flood Alert’ remains in place for the River Welland, as it has since Monday.
The Environment Agency say: “River levels in the River Welland remain high following recent heavy rainfall in the Lower Welland area, leading to flooding of low-lying land and roads close to the river.
“We expect the river to remain high throughout the next few days and flooding to gardens, driveways or outhouses is possible close to the river.
“Our forecasts indicate that flooding inside properties isn’t likely and therefore flood warnings are not expected to be issued.
“We are constantly monitoring river levels and have staff in the field checking for blockages and clearing weedscreens. Please avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses and plan driving routes to avoid low lying roads near rivers, which may be flooded.”
