Flooded A143 Compiegne Way, in Bury St Edmunds, to remain closed longer than planned after 36,000 gallons of water removed with more work needed

A major route which has been shut for nearly a fortnight due to flooding will remain closed until later next week after 36,000 gallons of water was removed but more work is needed.

Three quarters of the A143 Compiegne Way, in Bury St Edmunds, remains flooded despite efforts to clear it and will not reopen on Monday as initially planned due to the sheer amount of water, silt and debris that needs to be removed.

There is also significant damage to the surface of the road, which has to be repaired.

A Suffolk Highways spokesman said: “We are very sorry for the ongoing inconvenience this is causing residents.

“Please rest assured that we are putting pressure on our contractors to speed this work up where possible.”

Yesterday, its specialist sub-contractors started work on site and removed 18,000 gallons of water, before returning today to pump a further 18,000 gallons of water away, with three quarters of the road still flooded.

The spokesman said a tanker will be on site tomorrow and a further two tankers on Monday to continue removing the water.

Due to local facilities used to dump water being at full capacity, they are having to dispose of it at a plant in Beccles, which isn’t open on Sunday.

The spokesman added: “All the water needs to be gone before our contractor starts clearing the silt from the pumping system.

“They estimate there is approximately 80 to 100 tonnes of silt to be taken away, which is around two days’ work.

“Once all of that has been done, a road sweeper will go to site as the road will be covered in debris.

“It also appears as though there is significant damage to the surface of the road, so once this work is complete we will have the road defects repaired ahead of reopening the road.

“Unfortunately, due to the sheer amount of water, silt and debris there is to be removed and the need for road repairs, the road will not be able to be reopened Monday as hoped and will need to remain closed until later in the week.”

On Wednesday, Suffolk Highways said the flooding at Compiegne Way was made worse due to vandalism of a water storage tank.

Earlier this week, a community leader said the noise pollution caused by the closure of the flood-hit road has been like living next to the A14.

Melanie Soanes, chairman of Moreton Hall Residents Association, said that as a result of the closure, lorries have been using the Moreton Hall estate as a cut-through, and has called for something to be done to address repeated flooding, which has been an issue over autumn and winter.

Suffolk Highways took mitigation measures in April, which included removing more than 100 tonnes of silt from the drainage system and installing new pumps, but flooding has persisted.