The leafy south London neighbourhood of Herne Hill is a haven for cyclists who can often be seen lapping the local parks and refuelling at the many cafes that line the suburban streets. But there is something foul in the air of this corner of the capital – and for once it’s not the traffic fumes hitting bicycle riders. A toxic stench thought to be caused by untreated sewage stuck in Thames Water drains has been emanating from the subterranean depths for months, most likely caused by the summer’s lack of rain.
The stink is so acrid that the Bicycle Nation shop has had to bar some customers and its mechanics have been forced to work on the pavement outside. The owner of the shop, Tamas Polocz, has repeatedly complained to Thames Water since the smell first hit the shop in June and caused his colleague Nick to vomit. Last week the troubled water company told Polocz it accepted that a mains sewer directly beneath the shop was to blame, but it has yet to offer him and his team of 11 any date for resolving the problem.
Polocz and his colleagues have been left fearing for their physical and mental health after repeated exposure to the gassy stench. And the outlook for the business is bleak. The odour comes in putrid wafts that occur at least five times a day, according to a “smell chart” used to log the time and duration of each incident with a description.
The words used include “cabbage”, “teargas”, “onions”, “spicy BBQ” and repeated references to “shit”. When the Guardian first arrived at the shop there was a whiff of rotten eggs but not enough to stop mechanics working inside and customers milling about. But within minutes we were overpowered by a repulsive gas that hit the back of the throat and left us scurrying outside, gagging for air.
This is a smell you take home with you. It’s in your hair, on your skin, sometimes it feels it’s inside your skin. When you go home and cough, you taste it again.” The ordeal comes after record-breaking temperatures and drought prompted calls for a radical overhaul of an outdated sewage system, just as the Great Stink ushered in new sanitation in the Victorian era.
Thames Water initially suggested the Herne Hill smell was due to a gas leak. But extensive tests by the local gas supplier ruled that out. Polocz said he had been battling the company every week.
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