Council estate residents living with waste water pouring down their walls

The yellow water is attracting flies and mould has begun to grow on the damp walls in two flats in Thaxted Court.

Hackney Council said the water comes from a corroded waste pipe of a neighbouring flat which it has been unable to access so far.

The issue was first reported to Hackney Council in July (Image: Archant)

Alex, who lives in one of the flats with his wife and two young children, is worried about his two-year-old son who has a blood disorder illness making him highly susceptible to viral infections.

He said: “We’re flooded in the hallway, in the bathroom, and now it’s spread to the kitchen. Living in a one-bedroom flat is already hard but when there is literally this dirty yellow, bad smelling water dripping down in the kitchen and on the worktops.”

The issue was first reported to the council by resident Neil Jones on July 14 but after two separate visits by plumbers the leak had not been fixed.

Mould has started to grow on the damp walls (Image: Neil Jones)

The residents are now worried the water could cause an electrical fire by entering the plug sockets.

Neil said: “The whole flat smells of damp very strongly. The sitting room, kitchen, hallway and bathroom are affected with damp and insects.”

Both Neil and Alex have complained about bad health since the issue started, experiencing sore throats and stomach pains.

The dirty water has begun to discolour the walls and ceilings (Image: Neil Jones)

A Hackney Council spokesperson said: “We are sorry about the disruption and inconvenience caused by the leak in Thaxted Court. As a council we work hard to ensure that our residents are housed in safe, secure and fit for purpose accommodation.

“A corroded waste pipe in a neighbouring property appears to be potentially causing the leak. We have been trying to work with the resident of the neighbouring property to access their flat to rectify the issue for about one month, but have so far been unsuccessful.

“This has meant we have been unable to fix the leak. We are now taking legal steps to enable our officers to get into the neighbouring flat as soon as possible so we can resolve the issue.”