RESIDENTS have welcomed Thames Water’s decision to replace the water pipe running through a flood-blighted street as “a step in the right direction.”

The water company sent a letter to residents yesterday which set out plans to replace the entire 1.5km stretch of pipe in Normandy Crescent which burst on September 23.

The street was flooded for the second time in seven years as 15 houses and eight flats were hit by the burst.

Another 27 homes were cut off from the water supply.

Thames Water said it will present the findings of an independent investigation into the cause of the flooding at a public meeting on Tuesday, February 10 at St Francis Church of England School.

It also revealed plans to install leak-monitoring equipment on the new Cowley water main in an attempt to reduce the risk of a repeat flood.

Mother-of-two Mandy Blessing, 46, has still not returned to her home in the street and is living in temporary accommodation in Headington.

She said: “On the one hand they are trying to address the biggest issue but I am not sure if they are trying to address the problems with individual residents.

“I feel they are at least starting to communicate with us.”

Grandfather William Hillier, 86, and his wife June, 82, were also forced out by the flood in September.

He said: “It is a step in the right direction.

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“They must be taking it seriously now because the last time we were flooded [in 2007] it burst again.

“Now that they do know what has caused it and are going to tell us it is good news.”

Thames Water’s head of strategy, planning and assurance Rob Keen will explain the company’s decision to replace the pipe at the February 10 meeting, which starts at 7pm.

He will also present the findings of the investigation.

He said: “What happened in Normandy Crescent was horrendous, and I personally apologise.

“Having considered all the options, I am confident that replacing the water pipe and installing monitoring kit is the most effective way of reducing the risk of anything like this ever happening again.”

“Before this work starts, however, residents quite understandably want to know why the pipe burst and flooded their homes."

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