Repair work on the damaged pipe at Cat Nab car park is expected to continue into next week.
Northumbrian Water engineers have been working tirelessly to fix the pipe since it was damaged last week by a team working on behalf of Redcar and Cleveland Council.
The repair is proving a lot more complicated than originally thought, due to a combination of the location of the pipe, its depth underground, and the specialist fittings required for it.
The team are currently digging almost five metres into the ground to expose the pipe and assess what fittings are needed for the fix. Once this is done, these fittings will need to be manufactured specially. Work in the riverbed also needs to take place, which will require the watercourse to be dammed and diverted, and the team continue to work on the repair as a priority.
The mini sewage treatment works, which was built from scratch by engineers on Saturday, is helping to protect the environment while this work takes place.
This bespoke facility is treating as much of the flow as possible from the pipe, before returning it to the environment. This is the first time the water company has built a pop-up treatment works like this on this scale, and so quickly.
Northumbrian Water is working closely with the Environment Agency and Redcar and Cleveland Council, and the local authority are asking people to avoid the area and keep out of the water that runs from Skelton Beck to the sea at Saltburn until the situation is resolved.
While customers’ services have not been affected by this issue, Northumbrian Water understands the impact it has had for people living and visiting the area, and thanks the public for their cooperation while they do everything they can to get the pipe fixed as soon as possible.