Flooded park still no-go zone

A PARK dogged by extreme flooding is not the only one in its location to resemble a swimming pool - after it emerged a second play area filled up with water at the same time.

Both East and West Pilton playparks were affected by flooding, with some areas left under knee-deep water following severe weather earlier this week.

Council bosses said they had started draining East Pilton Park but that the issue was "complex" and would take some time to resolve.

The play area, which has been undergoing a revamp over the past six months, was built below ground level and packed tightly with wood chippings. It means that, whenever it rains heavily, the play area fills up with water.

Aaron MacPhee, 23, a chef from Silverknowes, takes his son Ethan, three, to the park regularly. He said he was astonished that it took so long for work to start fixing the problem and said the water was up to his knees in some places.

He said: "Over winter we couldn't use it because it was all frozen, and then after it thawed the park was flooded. Ethan was quite upset about it as there's not really anywhere else to go around here.

"I phoned up to complain to the council about three weeks ago and I'm pretty astounded it has taken them this long to get someone out. The water was up to my knees so it's far too deep for children to play in."

It is believed that the water covering West Pilton Park was a temporary flood that did not require further action. It has now drained away, but could clog up again next time it rains.

A spokeswoman for the city council said: "We have started work on the first stage of clearing the park of water (in East Pilton Park]. It is a complex problem which needs further investigation and we would ask local residents to bear with us."

Lorraine Hobbs, who originally highlighted the problem at East Pilton, said she saw the council start draining the park on Thursday and Friday.

She told the Evening News that the park was in a "dreadful" state and that she feared local children could drown or hurt themselves.

Her husband, James Hobbs, added: "Councillor Cammy Day has responded, stating that he has passed the issue on to the neighbourhood manager for action."

Cllr Day said: "A fair investment was made in the upgrade of East Pilton, so it's concerning that it is flooding like this.

"Right now it is dangerous and looks like a big pond. You have to wonder how much money was put in and why it isn't up to spec.

"Is there a flaw in the design? I'm looking into it."

In an article on Wednesday the Evening News stated that a picture of a flooded area was East Pilton Park. It was in fact West Pilton Park. We would like to apologise for the error.