Spalding area man says large puddle is gnome joke as an accident is inevitable
A trader is taking a novel approach to get action taken to resolve a large puddle which is covering a pedestrian crossing.
Lee Black fears an accident is going to happen as people are no longer using the South Street crossing in Bourne because a blocked drain is creating a 9metre long puddle which is swamping the area.
Mr Black, who owns Modnink in the town, has been using rubber ducks and fishing gnomes to raise awareness of the issue in a fun way after spending a year trying to get the issue resolved.
Mr Black, who lives in Weston Hills, said: “Someone is going to get hit - it is inevitable.
“People are not using the crossing because they can’t walk through the the puddle which is 6in deep and nearly 9metres long.
“When a car goes through the puddle, the water spray goes up 7ft high.”
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Mr Black, who has seen an incident between a mobility scooter and a school pupil, said the problem with the blocked drain started a year ago.
He has raised it with South Kesteven District Council and Anglian Water but the problem has not been resolved.
The blocked drain has also created problems for other traders in the area, including creating a mess on their shopfronts.
Last week, to raise awareness of the issue, he began to place items around the large puddle in the hopes of getting something sorted.
He said: “I had put some rubber ducks on the puddle one night and a life jacket, which was stolen.
“On Thursday morning, I thought I would use the gnomes. It is a bit of fun but this problem really needs to be resolved.”
Anglian Water says a technician attended South Street on Thursday and found its surface water sewer was clear and flowing.
South Kesteven District Council said it was an issue for Lincolnshire County Council.
Coun Richard Davies, the county council's executive member for highways, said that engineers will be out in the next few weeks to have a look at the problem.
He said: "We appreciate that the puddle that keeps forming at the crossing on South Street in Bourne is frustrating for local residents and businesses.
"We cleared the drain at the end of last year, but as the problem has continued, we will have a team on site in the next two weeks to carry out a more thorough investigation so we can try and fix the issue."
Town Mayor Brenda Johnson said: "It is not fair on the businesses down there as they have a right not to have to put up with this.
"To say they are coming out in a few weeks is not good enough."