'Do Not Enter' order lifted between Galley Hill and Normans Bay

The stretch of water was closed earlier this week after a power failure at Southern Water's Galley Hill pumping station

Author: Oliver MorganPublished 20th Aug 2022

Rother District Council and Southern Water have confirmed that the order in place banning people from getting into the sea between Galley Hill and Normans bay has now been lifted.

Back on Wednesday Evening (August 17), a spill at the Galley Hill pumping station - managed by Southern Water - suffered power failures which impacted the quality of bathing water in the area.

The 'significant' power failure caused their pumping station to release untreated wastewater into the sea at Bexhill.

The untreated water was later caught on video - dramatically gushing into the English Channel.

Southern Water and the local council liaised with the Environment Agency, and concluded the quality of the water was bad enough to close off that stretch of water to bathers.

Power was restored that day - when it was concluded the back-up system failed to kick-in.

Late on Friday (August 19), Southern Water announced the 'difficult decision' to close off the stretch of water between Galley Hill and Normans Bay was set to reopen - with the council lifting red flags on Saturday morning to swimmers and bathers.

Currently, the pumping station at Galley Hill is fully operational - but staff at the site continue to monitor the situation '24 hours a day'.

Southern Water have again apologised for the incident and have situated mobile generators on standby if power fails over the weekend.

Teams from the water company will also be carrying out beach walks as 'complex investigations' continue.

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