Car park pothole which exposed mains wires deemed safe by council

A POTHOLE in a Henley carpark which exposed electrical wires has been deemed safe by the district council.

South Oxfordshire District Council said on Thursday that the mains wires exposed in a 30cm by 10cm pothole in Kings Road car park had been inspected and were not live.

The hole next to the pedestrian crossing outside Majestic Wines had been noticed by former mayor and district councillor Martin Akehurst last Wednesday.

He said “three or four” wires had been exposed in the hole, two of which appeared to be severed. 

Mr Akehurst said he reported the hazard to South Oxfordshire District Council as well as parking facilities company Saba, which the council contracts to manage its car parks.

He said he was mostly concerned about whether the exposed wires were still “live” but so far had not identified anyone who could shed light on the matter.

As of Sunday lunchtime, he said it had appeared that nothing had been done to address the issue.

The district council later confirmed the following Thursday the wires were not live and that workers were hoping to fix the hole as soon as possible.