Family forced out by stench of burst sewer

Laura and Arron Delaney, with children Angel and Joe in their garden that was covered in faeces for 10 days, before First Choice Homes Oldham cleaned it up

A HEAVILY-pregnant woman and her family were have been forced out of their home by the stench of a burst sewer

The pipe exploded across Arron and Laura Delaney’s garden in Shaw — with the couple claiming the problem had not been fixed or cleaned up in 10 days.

For a number of those days, the family, which includes their son Joe (9), daughter Angel (4) and a baby on the way, lived with a friend in Doncaster because of what they describe as the unbearable stench at the First Choice Homes Oldham property.

Arron (29), of Eden Way, a gardener employed by Rochdale Council, said his wife’s due date is on Monday and he was worried about the health risk to her and the rest of his family.

He said: “We first noticed the problem when we went to feed the rabbits and there was human faeces in the garden.

“It was everywhere and the smell was unreal. No one came to see us for four days and when they did, it was not fixed properly. We should not have to live like this.

“We moved to a friend’s, because every time someone on the street used the toilet it would come up on to the garden and you can’t tell neighbours to not use the toilet.

“This is a huge health risk — my wife should not be breathing this in and my children should not be in a dangerous environment like this.”

The couple, who have lived in the property since November, 2010, are in the process of making a full complaint to First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO).

It was not until last Monday that staff came to clean up the mess and fix the problem.

A spokesman from the property-management company said: “We have apologised to Mr and Mrs Delaney for this unfortunate situation.

“Once we had fixed the initial problem on August 15, we realised there was a further blockage which required access to the home.

“Once we had gained access the problem was resolved immediately. This was a frustrating sequence of events for which we apologise.”