by GrahamTutthill

Flooding was narrowly avoided in Dover town centre after someone dumped a double mattress in the River Dour.

Environment Agency officers had to be called in with a special winch to remove the mattress which was in danger of becoming wedged under the bridge at Pencester Road.

The mattress was dumped into the river just upstream from the bridge and there were fears that if it became wedged under it, it could collect more debris causing a blockage and increasing risk of flooding within the local area.

With the mattress being waterlogged and extremely heavy, local council contractors were unable to remove it so the Environment Agency were called in with their specialist equipment.

The Lower Stour Incident Response Team attended and used a vehicle-mounted winch to remove the obstruction.

Anyone who sees large items of rubbish in their local river, which could cause an increased flood risk, should call the Environment Agency’s incident hotline on 0800 807060.

Full story in next week's Dover Mercury.