Prison sewage issue to be fixed soon, village told

Villagers kept awake at night by tankers pumping waste from an East Yorkshire prison have been told repairs will take place after Easter.

The sewage pumping station at HMP Millsike broke in November amid reports - denied by the company that operates the category C prison - that inmates had flushed T-shirts and trainers down toilets.

Residents in nearby Full Sutton said their quality of life has suffered as a result.

In a statement, Yorkshire Water said a new pumping unit would be installed in "nine weeks' time", with temporary pumps fitted this weekend.

Michaela Staddon, who has lived adjacent to the prison for about 30 years, said the sound of waste being pumped has been relentless, but she conceded the noise has now reduced recently.

"When it was going 24 hours a day, you couldn't get to sleep," she said. "For the first month, it was constant day and night, it was just a constant drone... You can hear it above the telly, when it clicks in."

Donna Simpson, who lives a few doors down, said: "It's been atrocious.

"We've had constant tankers and they don't just stop at midnight - they go right through to even six o'clock in the morning. It feels like you've got a tractor next to you.

"Even with the windows shut, you can still hear the constant droning all night. It's very disturbing."

Simpson, 54, added she is now considering quitting her home of 22 years.

Fiona Roberts, from Full Sutton and Skirpenbeck Parish Council, said there has been "an army of tankers tankering sewage away from the prison" since December.

She called on Yorkshire Water to fix the pumping station as soon as possible.

Roberts said the time estimate of nine weeks "just seems hopeless to me".

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: "Temporary pumps will be installed over the weekend at which point the tankering that was protecting HMP Millsike's wastewater services will cease but will stay on site temporarily as a precautionary measure.

"We understand that this has been inconvenient and would like to thank the local community for their patience. We expect the new pumping unit to be replaced in nine weeks' time and have reached out to local residents to keep them up to date with our progress."

They claimed the breakdown of the pumping station that serves only HMP Millsike occurred "due to abuse of the sewers with items that should not be flushed down the toilets."

"Only the three P's – paper, pee and poo – should be flushed down the loo, T-shirts, shoes, wipes and other detritus are not acceptable items and can cause damage to the system," said the spokesperson.

A spokesperson for Mitie said: "Yorkshire Water is responsible for the foul water sewage system. There is no evidence that prisoners flushing personal items has played any role in the breakdown of the pumping station.

"As part of these works, Yorkshire Water used sewage tankers to manage wastewater flows safely while repairs are under way. We understand the disruption it has caused locally, and we thank the local community and residents for their patience."

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