By Graham Brown
FLOODING MISERY is threatening the success of an Angus project which provides a vital service to vulnerable citizens across the county.


The Forfar Resource Store has delivered furniture, bedding and clothing to thousands but is now battling against the elements as well as growing demand due to a sewer problem on its doorstep.

Forced to find a bigger home due to increasing demand, the project relocated to Don Street in Forfar a couple of years ago. But the move—ironically, to a former plumber’s premises —has seen a series of floods dent the morale of the team.

Heavy rain earlier this month once again saw sewage pouring out of the street’s ageing pipes and into the Resource Store, damaging items.

Forfar councillor Glennis Middleton chairs the set-up and is at the end of her tether after being told by Scottish Water that the latest unfortunate episode was an “act of God.”

“It is disgusting to see that stuff pouring into the store, and that’s four times it has happened,” she said.

“In periods of heavy rain the sewer just can’t cope so it comes backing up and right into us. There’s no way that we could use any of the stuff which the water gets near, so it just has to be binned.

“We don’t have a lot of money to run this service and, had it not been for our landlord Grant Reid, who has been first class, we could have been in very serious trouble. But he should not have to be responsible for coming to the rescue and we really need this sorted out,” said Mrs Middleton.

“We will be filling in a complaint form and a claim for compensation but, more than that, we need this fixed.”

North Tayside MSP John Swinney has pledged to fight the issue on the Resource Store’s behalf.

“It is essential that Scottish Water fulfills its statutory duty to ensure that drains and sewers are properly maintained to avoid the distressing situation which has occurred here,” he said.

“The Forfar Resource Store provides an essential service to the community of Forfar and the surrounding areas and its job is challenging enough without these difficulties to contend with. I will be raising this directly with Scottish Water,” he added.

One of Mrs Middleton’s fellow Forfar councillors, Iain Gaul, knows the Forfar drainage system well from his previous career in the water industry and said the sewer problem has dogged the area for more than three decades.

“To completely resolve the problem you would be talking about relaying a sewer, but there are cheaper ways of helping solve this, and regular jetting of it would be one of those.”

After the latest storm of protest from the Resource Store and its supporters, Scottish Water has promised an investigation of the situation.

“We apologise to this customer for the inconvenience caused during the flood as a result of extremely heavy rainfall,” said a spokesman.

“The sewers are designed to cope with a certain amount of water but when rain falls in exceptionally heavy volumes this can often result in flooding. We are investigating this to see what can be done to alleviate this problem.”