The '˜Dirty Dozen' gang causing havoc in Dungiven

The ‘Dirty Dozen’ are the 12 most common items the public flush and dump down sewers.

The ring leader is the innocent looking baby wipe, closely followed by sanitary towel.

These ordinary household items head a gang of everyday products that cause mayhem with the sewer system when flushed down the toilet or dumped in the sewers.

Following a recent blockage in the area, staff pulled out a massive amount of ‘rags’ consisting of baby wipes, sanitary towels and face wipes which had clumped together.

“We are literally fighting a daily battle to clear blocked sewers at a cost of over £2.5 million to NI Water every year.” said a spokesperson for NI Water.

“NI Water will never win this battle alone. We need the support of the public to work with us to dispose of these items in the bin rather than down the sewer. Together we can beat the ‘Dirty Dozen’ and keep our sewers running freely,” the spokesperson added.