More heartbreak for flood-hit Skewen residents as water enters homes and rivers run through gardens after torrential rain

Residents in a community hit by devastating floods after a mine shaft blew out earlier this year have been forced to relive their nightmare after their houses were flooded again.

It came at the same time that a new mine water management scheme got underway to try to prevent a repeat of the flooding.

Those living in the area said drains had been unable to cope with heavy rain since the initial incident in January, which saw a disused mine shaft fill with water and ‘burst’.

Water poured into homes and gardens, damaging everything in its path, with some residents left with thousands of pounds worth of damage. Many are still facing a long wait before they can return to their homes, with some being told it could be up to a year. You can read more about that by clicking here.

READ MORE: Work begins on new measure to prevent more flooding in Skewen

Fortunately, it was only a short downpour on Monday, but it was enough to once more cause damage to properties, and has done nothing to reassure those fearful of being hit by another incident in the future.

One resident, Emma Jones, who lives with her family in Goshen Park, said: “It’s quite an anxious time when we’re home, any time it rains it is really concerning to be honest with you. We’ve had two really, really heavy downpours in the last two to three weeks and it was torrential on Monday. We actually had a river running round the back of our garden and pouring into our back wall.

“It is really quite concerning. There is a serious problem with drainage in the area. We were like a dog at a window running from one window to another concerned that we may be flooded again. There are other people who have been flooded again after the first incident in January.”

Another resident, Rhian David, is currently living with her family until November, as in January she experienced excessive damage at her home in Jubilee Crescent where she lives with her husband and their two children as water poured inside the property, as well as into their garden.

She said of the latest incident: “The water didn’t go directly into our house, but it was close. The drains are not taking water away. Our obvious concern is that nothing happened to the house. We’re living with family. We were offered housing but our little boy is too nervous about that.

“In our meeting the other day with the Coal Authority, someone asked if the blockage had been cleared, and if so, where was it, but that was palmed off. We don’t really know if the blockage has gone. With that sort of rain on Monday you expect a bit of flooding but definitely a major concern is whether there’s still a blockage they are not telling us about.”

Some other residents reported that water had made it into their homes.

A spokesperson for Neath Port Talbot Council said: “Our teams are continuing to make further investigations into the cause of Monday’s flood and will be on site with partner agencies to provide the necessary support to those residents who have been affected.

“Certain areas of Skewen and the surrounding catchment received extremely high levels of rainfall. The intensity of the rainfall exceeded a rate of 100mm/hour at its peak. Early indications suggest that the capacity of the drainage infrastructure in the area was exceeded, resulting in flash flooding at Dynevor Road and Old Road in Skewen. Once the rainfall eased, the flood water drained quickly from the area.

“The council’s local area co-ordinator has continued to support residents following the initial flood event in January, but is also available to provide additional help and assistance to residents affected by the recent flood event which occurred Monday.”

Work on a new mine water management scheme has begun to try and prevent a repeat of events that took place in January. The project will provide a new, permanent route for water from nearby mine workings and ensure any excess mine water from prolonged rainfall is collected by the scheme. It will be made up of new boreholes and a concrete capture structure to collect and route the mine water into a new culvert.

The system, including real time telemetry monitoring, was designed in consultation with residents and partner organisations including Neath Port Talbot Council and Natural Resources Wales. Investigations concluded that extensive, additional engineering was needed to stabilise the ground around the blowout to provide the necessary foundations for the new pipe work and mine water capture structure, because of unique geology discovered on site. Gas, electricity, water and telephone utilities have all had to be relocated by the relevant providers.

A spokesperson for the Coal Authority, said its thoughts remained with anyone affected by Monday’s flooding.

A statement added: “We understand that the surface water flooding was caused by heavy rain overwhelming the road drains. It was not mine water related and we do not believe that this incident is linked to the sad event in January. We continue our work to install the new permanent mine water management scheme. In the meantime the interim mine water management system continues to operate and worked effectively on Monday and during other recent periods of heavy rain.

“Neath Port Talbot Council are the lead agency for surface water and highways drainage. We continue to work closely with them as a partner agency and to provide support if needed.”

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Solicitor firm Watkins and Gunn is acting on behalf of residents in Skewen. Senior associate solicitor Lyndsey Gordon-Webb said: “Watkins and Gunn have been instructed by a number of Skewen residents who were affected by the flooding in January.

“We wrote a letter before action to the Coal Authority and, to date, have not received a substantive response to our allegations or requests for further information. A number of our clients have contacted us in relation to the new episodes of flooding and we share their concerns and will be raising these concerns with the Coal Authority.”

Do you live in Skewen? Tell us your experiences by joining the discussion in our comments section.