A terminally ill grandad has said he is “absolutely disgusted” at Southern Water's 'inaction' after his garden was filled with waste.

Colin Simmons said the garden of his Regents Park bungalow has filled with nappies, human waste and other filth after torrential rain hit Southampton.

As reported by the Echo, he found the sewage had spilt from a manhole and filled his garden. at the end of March. The filth included nappies and condoms.

Daily Echo: The sewage in Colin's back gardenThe sewage in Colin's back garden (Image: Newsquest, Jose Ramos)READ MORE: Terminally ill grandad's garden ruined by used condoms and dirty nappies

The 80-year-old called Southern Water but it was only after a few days that the water firm sent an engineer out to the home on April 3.

He claims he was told by the engineer that the issue did not relate to the main sewer but instead to his property’s pipe.

However, more than three weeks later he said the issue had not been resolved. A similar leak happened last Wednesday.

Surveyors said the issue did come from the main sewer and he was quoted more than £5,800 in work to install a non-return valve to stop sewage coming to flood his garden.

The dad of four has battled with lung cancer for two and half years and is now undergoing chemotherapy, meaning he has a weakened immune system.

He says it’s Southern Water’s responsibility to carry out the repair.s

He said: “Why should I have to pay for something when it’s Southern Water’s responsibility? It’s coming from their main sewage.

“I have been quoted £5,850 plus VAT. I shouldn’t have to pay for this. They have taken so long to get back to me. I am absolutely disgusted."

He added: "I call them and I get told I will get a call back, but it's just false promises because they never do."

Southern Water has confirmed teams have been out to address the issue and that roots from trees have impacted the sewer and caused a blockage.

A survey has been conducted and a robocutter will need to be used to remove the root.

'We're sorry'

A spokesperson for Southern Water said: “We’re sorry to hear that this customer had flooding in his garden, our teams investigated this and have carried out work on the main sewer in the area.

“However following our investigations the main issue is from a private drain, rather than a public sewer.”

The spokesperson added that the issues found were in a private drain meaning the customer is very unlikely to be entitled to compensation.