Storm Henk flood chaos: Map reveals where sewage has been discharged into the sea at nearly 100 south coast beaches after rain and heavy winds battered Britain

A deluge of sewage has swamped nearly 100 beaches on England’s south coast after Storm Henk battered Britain.

Popular seaside tourist spots including Hove, Folkestone and Newquay were among those drenched in filth after the country’s sewer system struggled to cope with the heavy downpours of rain in recent days.

Storm Henk saw heavy flooding across much of England which brought travel chaos as roads and rail lines flooded.

Swimming in the sea at affected areas could be unsafe as data from water companies shows raw sewage has been dumped into the sea for days at a time over the past week.

Thames Water dumped sewage into rivers at over 270 locations during Storm Henk, i news reported, after parts of England and Wales saw more than 40mm of rain in 24 hours from January 2.

Popular seaside tourist spots including Hove, Folkestone and Newquay were among those drenched in filth

A member of the public walks past a submerged car after the River Great Ouse burst its banks in Sotm Henk

A home is surrounded by flood water from the River Severn after heavy rain from Storm Henk

The majority of the UK depends on a Victorian era ‘combined sewage system’, which transports rain water and sewage in the same pipes.

To prevent sewage backing up into people’s homes during exceptional periods of rainfall, water companies are allowed to discharge raw sewage into bodies of what at particular points called combined sewers overflows (CSO).

There 35 bathing areas along the south east coast and the Isle of Wight which had been potentially affected by release of sewage over the last three days, according to Southern Water’s map.

At Folkestone in Kent, there was a potential 27 hours release of sewage which Southern Water is investigating to see if it is genuine.

There has also been a probe launched into concerns of an 18 hour discharge at Hove in East Sussex which started on January 2.

At a CSO close to Brighton, there was a 154-hour sewage discharge which began before Storm Henk started battering Britain.

There 60 beaches which had potentially been affected by sewage spills, according to South West Water’s map, including popular beaches at Lyme Regis, Torquay, Plymouth and Newquay.

A number of the discharges appeared to have begun last year – before Storm Henk came to Britain.

A submerged car sits in a car park after heavy rains and sewer system overflows caused the River Thames

Two people struggle through knee high water during Storm Henk

Flooding around Tewkesbury Abbey and town, Gloucestershire

Clean water campaigners have been critical of how much sewage water companies have been releasing into Britain’s rivers.

Professor Hannah Cloke, Professor of Hydrology at the University of Reading, warned that Britain’s ‘creaky’ sewers mean the situation will continue to get worse.

She said: ‘Storm after storm this autumn and winter has made Britain a sopping wet sponge and there is nowhere for any extra rain to go.’

‘It is a reminder that we need to invest a lot more into our water system to deal with increasing risks of flooding in the years ahead, which we know is likely to get worse.’

Ed Acteson from the campaign group SOS Whitstable said water companies have ‘arrived at this point’ where ‘basically sewage is released every time it rains for the entire duration of any rainfall and before it starts sometimes and definitely after it finishes’.

That shouldn’t be a normal state of affairs,’ he said.

A spokesperson for Southern Water said: ‘We have seen a number of longer storm overflow releases recently as a result of weeks of heavy rainfall, where either surface water has run off saturated ground into our sewers, or groundwater has forced its way into our pipes as pressure builds.

A submerged road sign as water levels remain high after the River Great Ouse burst its banks

A narrow boat sinks after breaking from its mooring during flooding on the River Soar during Storm Henk

‘We agree with campaigners and our customers, that storm overflow releases are not acceptable and that’s why we have launched our innovative £1.5bn Clean Rivers and Seas Plan to reduce spills as quickly as we can across our region.’

South West Water said: ‘We want our customers to know that we really care about reducing storm overflows and we are investing record amounts to do so.

‘Our plan is working, and we are improving, but unfortunately there have been spills at beaches over the last week due to the very heavy, prolonged rainfall and stormy conditions. ‘