A CREEPY baby doll, a lone shoe and a pair of pants, are just some of the strange and spooky finds uncovered by South West Water (SWW).

With Halloween approaching, SWW has revealed some of the strangest discoveries made by its teams and highlighting the work that goes on behind the scenes to keep the network flowing.

While carrying out routine maintenance and investigations across the region, SWW’s teams regularly come across items that were never meant to enter the sewer network.

Recent finds include a creepy baby doll causing a blockage, a sack of rubble stuffed into a sewer, a pair of pants discovered in a pipe, a lone shoe recovered from a sewer, and a children’s toy buried among concrete underground.

While some of these discoveries may seem bizarre, they shine a light on the challenges teams face every day to prevent small problems from becoming bigger issues.

While some discoveries might raise a smile, putting the wrong things down toilets and drains can have a big impact. Items that enter the sewer network can become trapped in pipes, causing blockages and restricting the flow of wastewater.

These blockages can increase the risk of sewer flooding, disrupt services for customers and contribute to pollution incidents. And unlike a Halloween horror story, these problems don’t disappear when the lights come on.

Wastewater director, Jay Harris, said: “A baby doll blocking a sewer is certainly one of the more unusual things we’ve come across recently, but our teams often find items that simply shouldn’t be in the sewer network.

“Every day our teams work behind the scenes to keep the network flowing and protect the environment, often dealing with the consequences of things that have been incorrectly flushed or disposed of.

“While some discoveries can be surprising, they highlight an important message. The sewer network is designed to carry wastewater, and unexpected items can cause blockages that put pressure on the network and increase the risk of pollution.

“That’s why we’re encouraging everyone to think before they flush this Halloween and help keep the network flowing.”

South West Water is reminding customers to only flush three Ps, pee, poo and paper, and dispose of their waste responsibly.

For more information, visit: www.southwestwater.co.uk/household/your-services/your-wastewater/bin-it-dont-block-it