A POTENTIALLY dangerous pipe that towers over a steep hill in Beer will be removed, South West Water has pledged. The assurance comes after a two-year campaign by Beer resident David Taylor, who has repeatedly asked the water company to look into the pub

A POTENTIALLY dangerous pipe that towers over a steep hill in Beer will be removed, South West Water has pledged.

The assurance comes after a two-year campaign by Beer resident David Taylor, who has repeatedly asked the water company to look into the 'public safety issue' surrounding the pipe.

Mr Taylor, of Long Hill, says he has on a number of occasions rang SWW after concerns were raised from several villagers about the safety of the 35-foot high air vent, located at the junction of Long Hill and Church Hill.

He said: "The pipe has a decorative top on it which probably weighs about 10 or 15 pounds. It is corroded and looks like it might fall off.

"There is a public bench immediately below it and is also right next to a public road-if it fell off it could potentially kill someone."

Fed-up with the seeming lack of action taken by SWW, Mr Taylor wrote to the chief engineer earlier this year stating:

"I have been unable to get this public safety issue resolved by calling your helplines and I believe a senior board level member of your organisation should intervene if your organisation is putting lives at risk by its inaction."

He also explained that the redundant pipe had "no structural integrity" as it has cracks in a number of places.

Following the written complaint, a SWW engineer was sent out to survey the pipe two months ago and Mr Taylor believed it was then going to be removed.

However the pipe still remains in place and this week a spokesperson for SWW said although the pipe will be removed they can not give a specific date for the operation.

She said: "South West Water is investigating the feasibility of removing a redundant vent stack from the sewerage network in Beer.

"It is a complex job that requires careful planning as the stack is next to overhead electrical cables, and removing it will require turning off the power for the duration of the work.