the Sewer
A trip down
Having dealt with various claims regarding sewers, or rather
things stuck down and blocking up the sewers, our Litigation
Department decided that a trip to the Victorian Sewers in
Brighton might be a relevant and entertaining trip. As it turned
out, quite a few people from Mayo’s have harboured a longheld desire to take a trip to see the inside of sewers, and so
we booked the Brighton Sewers Tour, run by Southern Water.
The thought of going down sewers that are fully in use was a bit nerve-wracking,
particularly when you were working out what to wear and whether it would smell of, well,
you know what! As it was, the smell was not too bad. You definitely noticed it at first, but
soon got used to it. Apparently it soon killed the smell receptors in your nose…
We met the four tour guides at the front door next to Brighton Pier. They worked there full
time and clearly knew their ‘stuff’. We picked out hard hats and gloves, and listened to the
safety briefing.
History of Brighton Sewers
Brighton (or Brighthelmstone) started off as a fishing village. It grew in size and in the 19th
Century, notable doctors recommended ‘taking the sea air’ and the benefits of drinking
sea water and sea bathing. Brighton became a seaside health resort, with tourists coming
to swim (or be dunked) in the sea from bathing machines. When the Prince Regent arrived
and set up home in the modest Royal Pavilion, the town became even more popular
with this Royal approval and thousands came to swim and socialise, as they do today.
However, whilst the tourists extolled the benefits of the sea water, their sewage was being
dumped into cesspools and onto the beach. This led to the ironic and unpleasant situation
where the sea water itself, which was supposed to have all these health benefits, became
polluted with raw sewage which would wash up on these crowded beaches. Imagine the
smell, mixed with the salt air and fish, not really helping a dodgy stomach or consumption!
In the 1860s Brighton Council decided that something needed to be done. They designed
and built an enormous and ambitious sewage tunnel system under the town, by hand, to
drain the sewage and surface water into three outfalls at the west of the town, the centre
and at Black Rock. Bricklayers made millions of bricks which were hand laid into the
circular and egg-shaped tunnels. An impressive 44 miles of sewers were originally laid
underneath Brighton; this has increased to 300 miles of main sewers beneath Brighton
and Hove as the urban areas increased. It was a feat of Victorian engineering, and their
design and workmanship has meant that the original sewers are still in use today. It seems
incredible to look at all the millions of individual bricks, and realise that they were all made
and laid by hand. Whilst the waste and surface water still drained into the sea, this was
disposed further out to sea and away from the beaches. The sea tides were used to flush
out parts of the system which kept the sewers themselves relatively clean.
In the 1990’s а massive storm water collection drain was constructed beneath Brighton
beach, using tunnelling machines. This is wide enough to drive а bus through,. Pumps
have been installed and this tunnel can take the heaviest of rainfall and pump it into the
drain, and back out when required. With heavy rain, the sewer systems can easily flood,
and warning and weather tracking systems are in place to ensure there is time to escape
before it floods, and to help the drain systems can kick into action in time. Southern water
now run the system and are responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the tunnels
and pipe systems.
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