St Albans Town Hall open for business after sewage clean-up
Fire engine in front of the Old Town Hall - Credit: Archant
THE district council in St Albans is continuing a clean-up operation after sewage filled the basement of the historic Town Hall in the city centre last week.
Firefighters from St Albans fire station and workers from Thames Water cleared the basement using pumping equipment Wednesday (27) afternoon and into the evening.
Crew commander Simon Lincoln said that firefighters arrived at the city landmark, a Grade II listed building, at 1.15pm after receiving a call about the basement being found flooded with liquid four-feet-deep.
St Albans district council staff worked throughout the night to help clean up the affected area.
A spokeswoman for the council said that the Town Hall in Market Place remains open for business despite the basement flood.
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She explained: “The flooding occurred after the main sewer in St Peter’s Street blocked and backed up emptying into the Town Hall’s basement.
“The Tourist and Information Centre, Merchant Tea and Coffee Company and the Town Hall venue are all unaffected.”
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Further work will be carried out over the next few weeks to fully clean the area and to repair or replace any damaged electrical equipment and boilers in the basement.
None of the surrounding businesses were affected by the flooding and are all operating as normal.
The council’s portfolio holder for leisure and heritage Cllr Mike Wakely said: “I want to thank everyone for their hard work in helping to clear the basement so quickly.”
