Emergency contacts

Emergency services

• 999 - Use this number to contact the emergency services in the event of an emergency
   
• Police non-emergency 101 - Use this number to:
  • contact Essex Police about a non-emergency crime issue
  • contact your local Neighbourhood Policing Team
  • seek crime prevention or personal safety advice
  • contact your nearest police station
  • speak to them about any other non-emergency issue

Flooding

From water pipes / sewage

Anglian Water covers Colchester for sewage disposal and part of Colchester for drinking water supply.

Sewage and Drainage Emergencies - Anglian Water: 08457 145 145

Report a leak - 0800 771 881

Affinity Water covers the remaining areas of Colchester for drinking water supply.

Drinking Water Supply, quality or leak - Affinity: 0345 357 2407

From rivers and the sea

This type of flooding should be reported to the Environment Agency.

Incident hotline: 0800 80 70 60.

To listen to recorded flood warning information for your area or speak to someone for advice.

Flood Warnings in Force: 0845 988 1188.

From highway drains or gullies

Flooding caused by overflowing drains or gullies within the highway network managed by Essex County Council should be reported to your local area highways office on:

Essex County Highways: 0845 603 7631. 

Non-emergency matters such as potholes or kerb defects can be reported online to Essex County Council via the link on the right hand side of this page

From surface water (rainfall)

During

If you are experiencing flooding to your property from surface water, groundwater or an ordinary watercourse (open ditches, culverts and drains), then contact:

The Lead Local Flood Authority, (LLFA) covering the Colchester Borough is Essex County Council.  They are responsible for managingflood risk from:

• Groundwater flooding - caused when heavy or prolonged rainfall makes the groundwater table rise above its normal level;
• Ordinary watercourses (streams and ditches) - channels which cannot contain large volumes of surface water runoff during or after heavy rain; and
• Surface water (rainfall) runoff - flows from, or over, surfaces such as roads, roofs and patios that cannot easily absorb water.

Essex County Council - Lead Local Flood Authority - 08457 430 430 

After

If your property has been damaged by surface water flooding, ECC may be able to investigate the cause of the flooding and, where possible, recommend solutions. Email floods@essex.gov.uk or call 08457 430 430.

Sandbags

Colchester Borough Council does not provide sandbags to residents and businesses.

Gas or Electrical Emergencies:

Gas leaks and emergencies

National Grid -  0800 111 999

Electrical emergencies (damage to high voltage towers, overhead electricity lines or substations)

National Grid -  0800 40 40 90

Report a power cut:

UK Power Network -  0800 31 63 105 or text POWER and your postcode to 80876

• Or if you're calling from a mobile: 0333 32 32 105
• Visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk for the latest update
• Visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/powercut and type in your postcode to their live power cut map
• Follow them on twitter for updates @ukpowernetworks
• See updates on their Facebook page here

Pollution

Environment Agency Incident hotline: 0800 807 060

Colchester Borough Council

For more detailed advice and plan templates, contact the emergency planning team or call 01206 282222