A renter claims his current living situation is worse than being homeless due to raw sewage leaking into his flat. The man, who does not wish to be named, said the problem started a year ago when he noticed 'black liquid' seeping through his pipes onto his bathroom floor.
The Hull resident, who lives in a house owned by Hull City Council, for months used his own clothes and towels to wipe up the mess. He says he was calling up the council almost every day for nearly a year and was 'screaming for help' - but got nowhere.
The man didn't know what it was but had assumed it was mould, HullLive reports. On April 14, when someone from the council visited the property, he says, the worker checked behind the toilet and opened up the fixture behind it.
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That was when he says he saw the pipes had severely backed up and realised that all of the 11-storey building's sewage waste had been seeping into his home for months. After this discovery, the man expected to be moved into temporary accommodation for his own health and safety, but he was left in his current home.
On May 3, council contractors arrived to rip his toilet apart. The man said while he was pleased the problem was finally being addressed, they had then left him in a home without any running water or an alternative space to go to the toilet temporarily.
He said: "That night I had to urinate in a jug, there was nowhere I could even pour it down because the sink had been disconnected, I had to wait for the workers to arrive for work the next morning before I could even run to a shop to go to the toilet. We clean zoos better than this.
"We treat prisoners better than this. Why do good citizens who have done nothing wrong get ignored like this? I have been homeless in the past, and that was better than this."
A Hull City Council spokesman said: "The Council is aware of the drainage issue at Bathurst Street flats affecting this customer which has required excavation of the drain to remedy the fault.
"All works to rectify the issue will be completed today. As the customer is represented by solicitors in respect of an ongoing claim relating to the property it would be inappropriate for the Council to respond further at this time."
