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Drainage and flooding on the highway


Flooding

Floods can occur during prolonged rainfall and after flash storms. The Environment Agency issues warnings when river and tidal conditions may cause flooding. 

Report flooding on the highway

For small areas of standing water or water flowing onto the highway from neighbouring land please report it using the link below.

Report flooding on the highway

Please telephone our 24 hour service on 0300 1234 222 if you come across a safety issue on the highway. Please give details of the location.  We prioritise our work during extreme weather severity, risk and availability of resource.

Issues with sewage

Please report issues with sewage direct to the water authority on 0344 346 2020. Calls to this number are free from landline phones, mobile charges may apply.

Highway drainage

Cormac looks after the county’s highway drainage systems on behalf of Cornwall Council.

The drainage systems:

  • manage surface water on the highway. This improves safety, minimises nuisance and prevents damage to the highway
  • minimise the impact of highway surface water on the surrounding environment

They are not designed to:

  • remove surface water from adjacent land or properties
  • provide an overflow system for land drains, watercourses, rivers or sewers
  • be a flood defence

We maintain our highway drainage in line with our agreed levels of service. These levels of service are in our Highway Maintenance Manual.

We carry out:

  • regular inspections
  • empty gullies
  • clear ditches
  • maintain grips and bolt-holes

The importance of the highway determines the frequency of cleansing and other treatment.

Report blocked drains on the highway

Sandbags

We do not have a statutory duty to provide sandbags.  You can buy sandbags from a local builders merchant. Read more about protecting your home from flooding on our flooding pages.

Need help?

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