Mundesley Beach was closed after burst pipe sewage leak

Mundesley Beach was cordoned off by Anglian Water and the coastguard service on Sunday (March 19), after the leak at the pumping station next to the beach.

People were advised by North Norfolk District Council to avoid the area.

Sewage leaked on to Mundesley Beach and into the sea (Image: North Norfolk District Council)

Engineers from Anglian Water worked through the night to fix the problem, but were not able to clear the spill before high tide, so it ended up in the sea.

The company said it would have had very little environmental impact, but apologised.

Mundesley Beach saw its water quality downgraded from excellent to good last year, meaning it cannot retain its Blue Flag status in 2023. It reopened on Monday.

Mundesley Beach was closed after the sewage spill (Image: ianwool)

READ MORE: Anglian Water bosses to be quizzed over Norfolk sewage

An Anglian Water spokesperson said: "Our teams have now repaired the leak on a sewer pipe at the pumping station next to Mundesley Beach.

"It was discovered early on Sunday morning and they worked through the night to make the repair.

"The beach is open as normal today, and we’d like to apologise to local residents for any inconvenience caused.

"We take our environmental responsibilities incredibly seriously and every incident like this is deeply upsetting for everyone that works here, and we are sorry for any upset caused to locals and beach users."

READ MORE: Work set to start on massive water pipeline

North Norfolk MP Duncan Baker said: "I am grateful and reassured Anglian Water, the Environment Agency and the district council reacted so quickly on a Sunday and I was in correspondence with them.

"Although we are told the impact is minimal, I'd still like to have reassurance of just how significant it is and how we can prevent it in the future."

The spillage comes as Anglian Water chiefs face a grilling by Norfolk county councillors about sewage spills.