Liverpool Council has offered an explanation as to the pace of investigation work at Queens Drive in the aftermath of the death of a married couple.
Despite the best efforts of emergency services, Elaine and Philip Marco, 75 and 77 respectively, died after their black Mercedes car became submerged in flood water in Mossley Hill on August 26. The much-loved members of the Jewish community were pronounced dead at hospital.
Since the tragic incident almost three weeks ago, officials from Liverpool Council and partner agencies have been on site to establish the cause of flood water gathering under the railway bridge and how this can be remedied.
Some have expressed frustration at the perceived slow nature of the work and have called for answers from the city council. In a fresh update, progress on the site has been confirmed.
In a statement, the council said, “Huyton Asphalt, working on behalf of Liverpool City Council, are currently undertaking trial holes at a number of locations where the flooding occurred as part of the investigations into the cause of the flooding. It is expected that these checks will be completed by the weekend. Initial findings have shown water seeping from United Utilities pipes. The excavated holes are now being checked, to assess their stability.”
Following the rush of water last month, the underlying ground on Queens Drive remains saturated, with trial holes said to be continuously filling with water. The statement added: “United Utilities have been informed of a small water leak on one of their fresh water supplies.
“This is being programmed in for repair and will have to be completed before the road is resurfaced. As part of the road closure, gully replacements along the road have been installed, which is usual practice when a road is to be resurfaced.”
United Utilities have remained on site to continue with their investigations, which are progressing slowly as the council said it is not currently possible to lower a camera into the sewer successfully because of water levels within the pipes. When running water is above a certain height within the sewer, potential issues cannot be clearly identified by the camera.
Network Rail will also be undertaking a structural inspection of the rail bridge and will investigate water coming from the structure, and drainage. The council repeated its apology to residents for the delay but said the incident needed to be fully investigated.
The statement added, “We apologise for any disruption that these necessary diversions are causing for residents, due to the need to ensure that the full causes and implications of this incident are expertly analysed.”
Image: GOOGLE
Why not follow birkenhead.news on Facebook, Twitter, and Threads? You can also send story ideas or letters to the editor to news@birkenhead.news