Portland family's fury over night work noise (From Dorset Echo)

Portland family's fury over night work noise

4:10pm Tuesday 9th March 2010 in

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ANGRY residents have hit out being given less than a week’s notice of repair work by their water company.

Marcus and Louise Armstrong have received a letter telling them to expect disruption when Wessex Water work through the night outside their home in King Street, Portland.

The couple had reported a leaking hydrant but were hoping it will be fixed in their quiet residential street while they were at work.

Mr Armstrong, 55, who starts his construction job at 7.30am, said: “King Street is nine feet wide and the work is going to be six feet from our front windows.

“Why can’t they do it in the daytime?

“No one’s come around or consulted with us.”

Mr Armstrong is worried about a restless night for their daughter Tallulah, six, who goes to Brackenbury Infant School and has been suffering flu-like symptoms.

The letter from Wessex Water is asking residents to leave the road clear as work will take place between 6pm on Wednesday and 6am on Thursday morning.

Mr Armstrong is angry as he feels this shows nobody has been to check the street.

He said: “This is just ridiculous.

“It says to leave the area free from parking but there’s no parking on the road.

“It will keep us up all night and the other children in the street.”

Mrs Armstrong, 45, said: “This isn’t urgent as it’s been like this for weeks. We work, but how are we supposed to sleep?

“To me it’s totally out of order.

“It’s appalling that they’ve not consulted us and that they think it’s good timing to start digging the road up in the middle of the night.”

A Wessex Water spokesman said it had written to more than 50 residents explaining what the work involved and included contact details for anyone who had concerns.

He said that residents were given the timings from 6pm until 6am as a precautionary move in case the work overran but it could be finished in as little as an hour.

He added: “Work is being carried out on behalf of Dorset Fire and Rescue Service to repair a fire hydrant.

“If residents prefer for this work to be carried out at another time we would be more than happy to change our proposed arrangements.”

He said he was hoping to speak to the Armstrongs and any other concerned residents in King Street to ensure any disruption would be kept to a minimum.