RESIDENTS living behind a new housing development in Haddington came home to find that builders had dug up their street, leaving them unable to get in or out and shutting down a water supply.

Work at the David Wilson Homes development at Dovecot Mill had already led to people living at Clerkington Old Mill, behind the site, being diverted onto a private lane to access their homes.

But they were stunned when they returned home last Tuesday and discovered that single track access into their properties had been blocked by barricades and a huge trench lined the lane.

One resident, who asked not to be named, said that she had to abandon her car at the entrance to the lane and climb over her gate to access her home.

While her neighbours discovered they were unable to get their car out of their drive because the trench had been left dug up outside their property.

They soon discovered that they had also been left without water by the work.

The resident told the Courier: “It appears they are trying to find a waterpipe.

“I couldn’t believe it when I came home and found I couldn’t get to the front of my house and my neighbours were unable to get their vehicle out.

“It is the final straw. We’ve already had our normal road into our homes closed off by the new houses being built, and are now diverted through a private lane which the landowner kindly allows us to use.

“At one point we were being rerouted over two fields which had no lighting and trenches; they’ve even dug up my neighbour’s garden and laid a gravel path over it.”

A spokesperson for David Wilson Homes said: “The works being carried out were due to complimentary upgrades from DWH to the properties next to our Dovecot Mill development. This included improvements to water and BT services.

“We had alerted residents to the planned works ahead of starting and explained the potential temporary impact on access.

“We are sorry for the inconvenience experienced; however, all services and access were returned to normal within 24 hours and the site manager made every effort to ensure residents were satisfied by making personal visits to each property throughout.”