{"id":735874,"date":"2026-02-01T20:10:14","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T20:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/735874\/"},"modified":"2026-02-01T20:10:14","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T20:10:14","slug":"northern-irelands-top-10-worst-areas-for-sewer-blockages-in-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/735874\/","title":{"rendered":"Northern Ireland’s top 10 worst areas for sewer blockages in 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pouring fats and grease down drains is causing chaos across the sewer network<\/p>\n

19:12, 01 Feb 2026Updated 19:49, 01 Feb 2026<\/p>\n

\"Teams<\/p>\n

NI Water teams tackling a fatberg on the Shankill Road<\/p>\n

After the dramatic ending of the latest series of The Traitors, Northern Ireland Water<\/a> is highlighting a new drama gripping Northern Ireland – one that’s unfolding beneath our feet.<\/p>\n

After months of hidden mischief and messy betrayals, NI Water has revealed the top 10 towns and cities pouring and flushing FOG (fats, oils, and grease) and inappropriate items down our drains, causing chaos across our sewers.<\/p>\n

NI Water\u2019s Head of Environmental Regulation Angela Halpenny explained: “The drama isn\u2019t just on TV<\/a> \u2013 it\u2019s under our streets. Much like The Traitors, there\u2019s a secret battle underfoot – one where the faithfuls (wise households) quietly protect our sewers, while the traitors (those pouring fats, oils, grease, and flushing inappropriate items such as wipes) risk sabotaging us all. Every time it happens it\u2019s a move that can lead to fatbergs, costly blockages, and even floods in homes and businesses.”<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Everything you need to know on NI’s new driving licensing laws coming later this year<\/a>READ MORE: Northern Ireland parental leave extended to those who experience miscarriage<\/a><\/p>\n

In 2025, there were a total of 602 sewer blockages in Northern Ireland<\/a>, while in 2024 there were 646. The four-year rolling average is 840 sewer blockages per year.<\/p>\n

Angela continued: “The results are in and the traitors have been revealed, but there\u2019s a plot-twist. The scoreboard also shows some good news: the faithfuls are winning! In 2025, NI Water saw sewer blockages drop below the four-year average, keeping up the trend of fewer fatbergs and cleaner pipes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Northern Ireland’s 10 worst areas for sewer blockages in 2025:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Belfast – 111 blockages<\/li>\n
  2. Portadown – 59 blockages<\/li>\n
  3. Lurgan – 39 blockages<\/li>\n
  4. Dungannon – 38 blockages<\/li>\n
  5. Derry – 36 blockages<\/li>\n
  6. Lisburn – 32 blockages<\/li>\n
  7. Craigavon – 24 blockages<\/li>\n
  8. Armagh – 21 blockages<\/li>\n
  9. Newtownabbey – 19 blockages<\/li>\n
  10. Cookstown – 15 blockages<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    How to avoid sewer blockages<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Bin your FOG: Let fats, oils, and grease cool, then scrape or pour them into a container and pop it in the bin.<\/li>\n
    2. Wipes aren\u2019t flushable: Even \u2018flushable\u2019 wipes don\u2019t break down – always bin them.<\/li>\n
    3. Only flush the 3 Ps: pee, poo, and (toilet) paper.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage<\/strong> here<\/a> and sign up to our daily newsletter<\/a> here.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pouring fats and grease down drains is causing chaos across the sewer network 19:12, 01 Feb 2026Updated 19:49,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":735875,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5011],"tags":[78922,80374,80195,80196,81144,87752,1144,204886,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-735874","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-northern-ireland","8":"tag-co-antrim","9":"tag-co-armagh","10":"tag-co-derry","11":"tag-co-tyrone","12":"tag-in-the-know","13":"tag-newtownabbey","14":"tag-northern-ireland","15":"tag-northern-ireland-water","16":"tag-uk","17":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115997194592414250","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/735874","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=735874"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/735874\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/735875"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=735874"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=735874"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=735874"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}