Turkeys, roast potatoes and pigs-in-blankets could cause misery to thousands of Severn Trent customers this festive season.

Christmas cooks are warned not to pour fats, oils and greases down the sink and toilet.

Grant Mitchell, from Severn Trent, explains: “This time of year is a real headache for our sewer teams because lots of festive cooking means that a lot of extra fat, oil and grease ends up clogging up our sinks and drains, jamming up pumps, and wreaking havoc at our sewage treatment works.

“And on Christmas Day, our teams are at work, cleaning out blocked drains and sewers to stop our customers from having sewer flooding ruining the big day.

“It’s easy to assume that the warm grease and fat left over from your Christmas dinner would be ok to dump down the sink, as long as you wash it down with a lot of hot soapy water. But the reality is that quite quickly the fat and grease will cool and solidify, build up and block the drain or sewer.”

Rather than washing greasy pans in the sink, wipe them out with some kitchen roll, and put it in the bin. You can pour large amounts of left over cooking grease into a pot or jar with a lid, or into one of the free fat traps that we provide to our customers.

If you do run into problems this Christmas, with either slow drains or a blocked sewer which is Severn Trent’s responsibility you can report it at www.stwater.co.uk or tweet the water company @stwater.

Teams both in the call centre, and those out and about, work all day, every day, so even on Christmas Day they’ll be available to help out with any problems customers might have.

Grant added: “But no-one wants to deal with a clogged sink or drain, especially over the holiday season. So while you’re cleaning up from your Christmas roast, spare a thought for your drains.”