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151
This was due to the surcharging of the Western sewer,
which passes through the Fulham Palace Road and Dawes Road.
This sewer was charged to within 13-ft. of the surface of the
roadway, or about 8-ft above the crown of the sewer.
It was also found that the nearest ventilator in the Fulham
Palace Road, to the end of Claybrooke Eoad sewer, was stopped
up, so that the ventilator in Claybrooke Road acted as a
ventilator to the Fulham Palace Road sewer.
Acting under the instructions of the Vestry, I wrote you on
30th July last, calling the attention of the Council to the
inadequacy of this Western sewer, and stating that, on the 26th
July, the sewer was surcharged to the heigth of 9-ft. 6-ins. above
the crown, causing the Colehill Lane sewer, belonging to the
Vestry, and situate at a distance of 2,400 feet away, to be
surcharged.
You replied to that on the 5th October, stating that the
"Council's officers did not remember any flooding of houses,"
and that under existing conditions the capacity of the sewer
appears to be sufficient.
With respect to the flooding of houses, I beg to inform you
that shortly after my appointment in 1886,1 received a complaint
of certain basements of the houses in the Broadway, Walham
Green, being flooded to a depth of 6-ins.; since that date I have
received repeated complaints of these cellars being flooded, and
on the 19th July last they were again flooded to about the same
level. I have also received complaints of flooding of cellars of
houses in Hatfield Street out of Field Road.
With respect to the capacity of the sewer, I beg to state
that the Western sewer in this District is surcharged at every
heavy rainfall.
It is manifest that when such surcharging takes place the
subsidence of the sewage in the sewers of the District must be
very gradual; (I have been informed that it has takes 10 hours to
raise the sewage from this Western sewer into the Low Level
sewer) and that such gradual subsidence must lead to large
deposits of solid matter in the sewers.
The statements contained in this letter my Vestry consider
indisputable, and it consequently fails to see that the Council
can consider either the capacity of the sewers in the Parish, or the
pumping power at the Victoria Pumping Station adequate.
This Vestry further trusts that your Council will give this
matter the serious consideration which its importance merits,
especially having regard to the enormous growth of this and
neighbouring Parishes."
I remain, yours faithfully,
JAMES P. NORRINGTON,
H. De La Hooke, Esq., Surveyor to the Vestry.
Clerk to the Council,
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