HUNDREDS of wet wipes were removed from a drain in Tisbury.

Wessex Water has released images of the unpleasant blockage in the village to show what can happen when wet wipes are flushed down the toilet.

It is urging customers to only flush the three Ps – poo, paper and pee.

Wessex Water’s Dave West, whose team cleared the blockage, said: “If you flush wet wipes, you are putting your home, our pipes and the environment at risk, which is why we always advise our customers to only flush the three Ps.

“This blockage shows some people still aren’t getting the message, so we are urging customers in the area to bin wet wipes instead of flushing them down the toilet.

Salisbury Journal:

“We also advise customers to bin wet wipes that are marketed as ‘flushable’. A number of companies state their wet wipes are flushable without passing the water industry’s strict Fine to Flush standards.”

Wessex Water says most wet wipes contain plastic and don’t break down like regular toilet paper when flushed, causing obstructions that can result in sewage entering people’s homes as well as rivers and watercourses.

The water and sewerage company clears around 13,000 blockages on its network every year at a cost of £5million, with wet wipes contributing to the vast majority of them.

Visit: wessexwater.co.uk/stoptheblock

Get more Salisbury news. 

You can also like our Facebook page and follow us on Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date.

If you want online news with fewer ads, unlimited access and reader rewards - plus a chance to support our local journalism - find out more about registering or a digital subscription.

Email newsdesk@salisburyjournal.co.uk with your comments, pictures, letters and news stories.