Council to repair ‘ridiculous’ flooded road in South Cockerington

Frequent flooding at Mill Hill Way, in South Cockerington, has blighted the lives of motorists for several years, but the Leader has received several reports that the problem has become worse over the last few months.

During the winter months, the so-called ‘lake’ can often resemble an ice skating rink.

One North Somercotes motorist, who did not wish to be named, drives through Mill Hill Way on their way to work.

She said: “(The road) has been prone to flooding for years, but this last few months has been unbelievably bad.

“When the rain was fairly persistent in early December it began to flood on the short stretch of road, worse if travelling towards Louth.

“By Christmas it was a constant flow from a hole in the lower verge. Each time it rains it gets worse. Some days it resembled a lake!

The motorist added: “Trying to drive through it has at times felt very unsafe, particularly on icy days and when it’s at its highest, especially in a small car.

“Driving to work to Louth is hazardous at the best of times with subsidence and poor road conditions, but trying to navigate through South Cockerington is ridiculous.”

The motorist added that the road was ‘like a skating rink’ during the very cold spell of weather earlier this month.

The stretch of road has also been the recent subject of discussion on the ‘Move Louth Forward’ group on Facebook, with several residents saying the flooding was a regular nuisance and some motorists saying their vehicles had been damaged by the deep water.

Meanwhile, Philip Needham from P H & B M Needham, who owns the land adjacent to the road, told the Leader that the situation has been bad for “five or six years” and added that he was “fed up” with it.

He added that, three weeks earlier, a car had ended up going off the road due to the poor road surface, and other vehicles had suffered damage as a result of the flooding.

The Leader contacted the county and district councils, which have been working together to identify the issue – suspected to have been caused by a culvert which has been ‘compromised’ due to cables from a nearby wind farm.

In an update last week, a spokesman for the district council told the Leader: “I can confirm that colleagues did carry out site visits with LCC Highways last week. Surveys found many problems with the drainage in the area, including issues with the culvert and blocked waterways.

“Works to fix the drainage in the area, and some highways repairs, are due to be carried out from March 3, with Mill Hill Way being closed for one week to facilitate this.”