AN OSWESTRY councillor has slammed Shropshire Council over residents having to fork out money to pump flood water away from their homes - which he says was provided previously by the authority.

James Owen, the most-recently elected councillor in Oswestry, was joined in his condemnation of Shropshire Council by his Liberal Democrat colleague and North Shropshire MP Helen Morgan.

It comes after residents of a road close to Gobowen Road, in Oswestry, told The Advertizer that they had been left ‘exhausted’ by the flooding following Storms Gerrit and Henk.

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Residents of Guinevere Close are having to pay a cost one councillor has called 'extortionate' to employ a pump operator to lower the water levels in Gobowen Road.

Councillor Owen said: “At this point it is nothing short of an utter failure that residents are being forced to pay themselves for services that, back in 2020, Shropshire Council provided to them.

“These residents have once again had to make the extremely difficult decision to fork out £150 per hour, after already having to do so previously in October.

“That is during a cost-of-living crisis and to pay for something which fundamentally needs to be sorted out by Shropshire Council."

The current flooding has been slowly rising since December 27, with the residents constantly worried that every period of rain would lead to their properties being flooded.

Despite this, according top the Liberal Democrats, they have had ‘little to no help’ from Shropshire Council, with all departments beside the generic emergency line closed over the whole Christmas period.

Following the recent heavy rain, the water levels increased to their highest level in three years, reaching the residents’ properties.

Upon contacting Shropshire Highways on Tuesday, residents were told they would be provided with sandbags but say they are still waiting.

This led to a collective decision to pay a pump operator once again – previously been provided by Shropshire Council during flooding in 2020 – to come out and pump the water away.

Residents have also resorted to makeshift pumps of their own design.

This current incident follows on from previous problems late last year that led to the start of a campaign by Cllr Owen, supported by Mrs Morgan.

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Mrs Morgan added: "Residents shouldn't be forced to shell out thousands for a job that the council should be doing themselves.

"I've written to Shropshire Council again to express my concerns and demand a long-term solution for residents."

Shropshire Council was approached for comment.