The pre-Christmas arrival of snow looked very picturesque and great timing for all the children who were already hyped up about Christmas. It was lovely to see families out enjoying the snow, homemade sledges rapidly being constructed, cold hands throwing snow balls and bobble hats everywhere. What followed was not so exciting and the problems started in earnest when the snow froze and the ice took hold. Water pipes burst, water supplies were disrupted across the country and the transport infrastructure ground to a temporary halt.
The expanding ice infiltrated the already existing smaller potholes and made them bigger, the melting ice then caused flooding, especially over low lying fields and the potholes on many of the roads became invisible under the flood water which followed. Unsuspecting drivers only discovered the potholes when it was too late, tyres were burst and the journey was ended, wheels were damaged and in some cases vehicles were involved in incidents as a result of hitting a pothole.
Social media sites are full of stories and photographs of pothole nightmares, one local driver damaged the wheel on a very special vehicle, the cost of replacing that wheel alone was close to £2,000. There were over 30 potholes on the way to Camber from Rye, those around the watersports centre were the worst, giving some people no option but to go into the middle of the road to avoid them.
Also at Camber the road opposite the Jurys Gap carpark is in a poor state and if you hit these at night, at speed there could be serious implications, particularly if you are on a cycle or motorbike.
The public have been sending their claims in to the relevant authorities complete with an explanation, photos of their damaged vehicles, photos showing the size and depth of the potholes and an accurate description of the location.
If you have damaged your vehicle as a result of a pothole, you can report your claim to https://www.gov.uk/report-pothole and if you think the issue is an emergency you can contact East Sussex Highways on their dedicated number 0345 60 80 193.
On the ESCC website is the following information.
- Dangerous potholes will be made safe within two hours and fixed within 24 hours
- Less urgent potholes will be fixed as soon as we have a crew working in the area. This is usually within a week
- Completed works are monitored to ensure the road is safe for public use.
Good luck with progressing your claim and in the meantime please let us know of any dangerous potholes near you which we can highlight and hopefully help to mitigate the potential of any further incidents.
Image Credits: Nick Forman , Natalie Arter .