HURWORTH Green should stay flood-free from now on thanks to a determined effort by borough council engineers to solve the problem.

Last month, Darlington Council highway manager John Ray and his team moved into the village to begin investigations to solve the long-running problem of flooding on the green.

With a list as long as his arm of incidents when heavy rain deluged the ancient green and covered the road and pavements, he knew he had his work cut out.

Previous investigations, which included the clearing out of many surface drains in the village, had failed to make any impact. Determined to solve the puzzle, the team left no stone unturned in the quest for an answer.

"We used metal detectors, put dye into the drainage system and hired huge high pressure jets to flush out silted up drains," Mr Ray told the D&S Times.

"But the real answer came when we discovered a number of hidden manhole covers on the green. They had been covered with mud and grass over the years and finding them set us off in the right direction.

"We opened them up and found some of the drains choked with soil and silt which was preventing the water from flowing freely. The slower the water goes, the more quickly it silts up. We blasted them with the high pressure jets and this seems to have done the trick."

Other drains in the surrounding area were also cleaned out using the high pressure jet.

Coun Peter Foster, ward councillor and parish councillor for Hurworth, is delighted with the result.

He said: "The council has done a lot of hard work and we thank John and his engineers.

"Nobody knew any manholes existed on the green, and since the pipes have been cleaned out from these holes, the green has been completely dry."

Investigations into solving the continuing saga of flooding in the village's West End begin in the new year.