Call a plumber not 999, say fire officers

The warning comes after crews were called to three flooded homes in the Littlehampton Gazette area over the weekend, and many more across West Sussex.

The first was in Angmering High Street at 11.30am on Friday, where crews isolated the water and electricity supply and carried out a savage operation, after a house and a bungalow annexe were flooded.

On Saturday, just after 3pm, crews were called to a bungalow in Finisterre Way, Littlehampton, and on Sunday they went to a basement flat in South Terrace, at about 3.05am.

Jackie Boyle, community fire and road safety officer at West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, said: "The challenging weather conditions are placing extra demands upon all of the emergency services and people can do their bit to help us, and their own communities, by dialling 999 only in an genuine emergency.

"Burst pipes happen when freezing temperatures cause the ground in which the water mains are buried to move, putting pressure on the pipes and fracturing them. Its crucial that people know where their stopcock

is, and that they try it to make sure it hasn't seized up.

"You should find this under the kitchen sink, or where the service pipe enters your home. If a pipe bursts, turn off the stopcock and central heating boiler and call a plumber."

She added that people should not be deterred from dialling 999 if they feel there is a risk to life as a result of flood water damaging electrics.

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