A NURSE from Meysey Hampton has been left retching after a lake of raw sewage at the back of her home was left untreated by Thames Water for close to five weeks.

Desperate Carol Musgrove has become all too familiar with the sight and smell of raw sewage, toilet paper and sanitary products floating in the deep pool which is only a stone’s throw from her Hamilton Croft property.

The 64-year-old, who has lived in the Cotswold village for 10 years, claimed that she had contacted Thames Water about the problem every day for three weeks but to no avail.

“I feel like I’m something of a lone voice stuck with this growing problem. The only thing I’ve got back from them [Thames Water] is an automated email that says they are looking into it,” she said.

Sewerage has long been an issue in Meysey Hampton; in 2012 the village saw a convoy of 20-tonne lorries pass through its roads every day in an attempt to pump away the over spilling waste.

Carol said: “I’ve reached the end of my tether with this problem. I just had to say something about it.

“This whole situation feels like the tip of the iceberg and if it isn’t sorted out soon, I know it will just get worse.”

She also explained that, on any given day, the village is susceptible to being shrouded in the pungent odour given off by the lake.

Following enquiries made by the Standard, Thames Water has since sent its engineers to Meysey Hampton on Friday, January 31 to address the problem.

A spokesman for the water firm said: “We sympathise with the customer as this is clearly a very frustrating situation. Heavy rainfall over the last four weeks means we are dealing with a very high number of flooding incidents across our region and we are trying to prioritise as best we can.”

The issue of raw sewage has already plagued many Cotswold residents in 2014, with a number of streets in Cirencester and neighbouring Siddington falling victim last month.

The town’s Abbey Grounds was transformed into a makeshift cesspit as contaminated water was pumped away from the homes closest to the River Churn.

Cotswold MP Geoffrey Clifton-Brown recently told the Standard that reports of flooding and sewerage in the area are being sent to him “on an almost daily basis”.

He encouraged any people worried about flooding to attend one of his public meetings that will be held in various locations across the Cotswolds on Friday, April 4.