Huge 30ft mud mountain turns Northants family’s life into ‘living hell’

An angry family is fed up with a festering pile of dirt and mud looming over their home.

Andrew and Sharon Allen, from Irchester, Northamptonshire, say their life has become “a misery” after developers left a 30ft mountain of mud at the end of their garden.

The couple, who work for the NHS, live just meters from a proposed 70-home estate and the mound appeared after development began in June this year.

Sharon, 45, was even rushed to the emergency room earlier this month after suffering breathing problems which she claims were caused by breathing in dust from the construction site.

Their 20-year-old son also suffered from severe asthma attacks in the summer, so they could neither enjoy their garden nor open their windows.

Andrew, 48, a paramedic, said the experience was “hell on earth”.

“Since June, the mud pile has gotten bigger and bigger.

“The prevailing wind blows the dust onto our property 20 percent of the time.

“In July my son who has asthma had a really bad attack.

‘He went back to university in early August to get away from the dust.

“You can feel it in your eyes and in your mouth. It’s like sandblasting on the beach.

“When my wife was taken to the hospital, the doctor said it was most likely a reaction to the dust.”

The family are demanding urgent action from Mulberry Property Developments Ltd who are building the new property.

Last month North Northamptonshire Council slammed a notice on the company after ruling that the site posed a “dust nuisance”.

Firm assertion that debris and mud accumulation is a temporary problem and will be removed in due course.

Andrew, who has three children, added: “We are not the only ones affected by the dust.

“There are five other houses on this street and they all suffer the same.

“We are unable to enjoy our outdoor space, which is detrimental to our mental health.

“On the days when the air quality is very bad, which is often the case, there is no respite even indoors, the atmosphere is heavy and thick, you can taste the dust in the air.”

Her neighbors Larry Poole, 77, and his wife Julie-Anne, 63, say they have also been badly affected by the dust from the site.

Larry, a retired carpet fitter who has COPD, said: “Over the summer we wrote to the site manager about the gritty sand dust that was flying around in the air.

“We can’t sit outside in our garden either, it gets on the windows and in the plastic window frames.

“I also have COPD and that means I can’t sit in the garden. My wife also has a very weak immune system. It’s not very healthy for us to come into contact with all that dust.

Chris Russell, site manager at Mulberry Homes, said: “We are working with the local planning and environmental health teams to use best practice to mitigate the dust on site and are removing the overburden while we pay attention to the increased traffic.

“We understand residents’ concerns and remain grateful to them and the wider community for their patience.”

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, Visit our news page.