A ‘DANGEROUS’ stream of water near a Bacup school is an ‘accident waiting to happen’, according to a councillor.

The junction of Pennine Road and Tong Lane has been plagued by drainage problems for months.

Greensclough councillor Jimmy Eaton has called on council bosses to sort the issue out before the water turns to ice in winter.

It is believed the problem started when a drain was diverted after work on a nearby housing development.

This has caused the pipework to become blocked and caused the water to escape rapidly from a manhole.

Coun Eaton said he had been asking for the leak to be resolved for more than two months, after being approached by concerned parents of pupils at St Mary’s RC Primary School in Tong Lane.

He said: “The water washes debris and rubble onto the roads and this is a risk for pedestrians and motorists using the school.

“Children have to walk over the water, but what happens when it gets colder and it turns into ice? It’s going to be dangerous.

“I went down on Saturday and already it was freezing over and it’s only September. It’s not good enough that it’s taken so long for action to be taken.”

He added that the stream sometimes stretched as far as South Street in the town centre.

Mum-of-two Natasha Plover, 24, lives on Pennine Road and claims the stream has caused flooding in her house this summer.

She said: “I have a six-year-old son and a one-year-old daughter and the council won’t even provide sandbags to help me out.

“The water runs right up to my door and they have done nothing.”

A spokesperson for Rossendale Council said that although it has permission to repair the problem, it must give the site’s developers the opportunity to fix it first.

The spokesperson added: “Our building control department is looking at it. Unfortunately the site appears to have been abandoned by the private contractors.

“If there is no response from the developer then we will serve them with a notice and get our own contractor to deal with it.

“We hope to have it resolved in the next month. This particular track is a key area, with the tip and school nearby it can be very busy.”