Our team of blockbusters are on a festive mission across the region and beyond – to stop smelly fatbergs from ruining family Christmases this year.
Complete with Santa hats, the engineers have been touring hotspots where we know these problems happen most often, blocking sewers and risking flooding disasters.
They even stopped off at the National Drainage Show in London to hammer home the message: ‘Bin for the Win’.
Collins: Paying the price for blockages
Matt Collins, who leads our FOG and Unflushables team, explained,
“There’s a one-in-ten chance of a fatberg blocking your pipes this Christmas if you pour fat, oil and grease down the sink – turkey or otherwise!
“Festive feasting can leave sewers stuffed and customers may have to pay the price to clear their pipes if they find themselves with a blockage.”
The stats
We know that:
- More than 70 per cent of blockages are preventable.
- In Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, there have been more than 6,800 sewer fatberg blockages in 2025.
- For every 1 million turkeys cooked, around 250 tonnes of fat and oil finds its way into our network.
A fatberg is a solid mass of congealed fat, oil, and grease – known as FOG – which when combined with non-biodegradable waste like wet wipes, sanitary products and cotton buds, can form in sewage pipes.
Matt Added,
“FOG should never go down the drain. Instead, allow them to cool in containers, avoid a potential greasy nightmare and put the turkey fat in the bin.”
Freeze turkey fat
Alternatively, you could be your own Christmas Master Chef and freeze turkey fat in containers to make stock cubes.
They can be added to casseroles for an extra kick of flavour and can be used to enhance a host of dishes such as soups, stews, risottos and roast potatoes.
Flush only the three Ps down the loo
Everything else goes in the bin, like fats, oils, grease, nappies, baby wipes, tampons, sanitary towels, panty liners, colostomy bags and condoms should be bagged and binned.
Cleansing wipes, ear buds, dental floss, plastic razors and cotton pads.
Matt said,
“A big thank you to all our customers who already dispose of household waste correctly. Make it one of your New Year’s Resolutions to keep it clear, and you’ll be doing your bit to help prevent blockages and flooding.”
News shared by Southern Water, in their own words. Ed
