A WIDOW says a housing association has left a burst water pipe unrepaired for five years, meaning her apartment constantly floods.

Maureen Whitaker, of Livingstone Court, Matlock Road, Leyton, said London and Quadrant has repeatedly failed to fix the problem, leaving her in wet, foul-smelling conditions.

She says the burst pipe means water pours into her flat whenever an upstairs tenant uses their washing machine.

The 73-year-old claims water first started leaking from overhead outside her front door five years ago and in the past year it has spread to her bedroom, bathroom and kitchen.

The widow said: “I have been reporting the problem for years and when I ring the Neighbourhood Services Officer she says it is an issue for the maintenance man and then he says no, it is an issue for her.

“Then they tell me they cannot do anything because they cannot get access to the flat with the leak.”

“It is disgusting the way they treat me. I am a pensioner living alone and I have been pushed to the side.”

The mother-of-one is now forced to bathe in the dark after L&Q removed her bathroom light for safety reasons, due to the amount of water dripping from overhead.

She said every time one of the tenants operates their washing machine, water gushes through her ceiling, damaging furniture and sentimental items.

She said: “Every time the washing machine is turned on there are gallons of water pouring down.

“You can imagine how much water is from a wash and two rinses.

“It will cost hundreds of pounds to replace all the carpet, the furniture, the clothes and to take away the mould.

“But the family photos cannot be replaced. They have been ruined.”

Mrs Whitaker, whose husband Alan Donald died 15 years ago, said being forced to live in a house with soaking carpets has taken its toll on her health.

Although her son Rodney, 50, intervened and contacted L&Q, she is still waiting for the problem to be fixed.

She said: “It has made me so depressed and fed up and I am on tranquilisers as I get so stressed

“I am so exhausted from it and it makes me want to go and sleep forever.

“My son got so angry he contacted senior managers who promised to help but so far they have not come back.

“I feel like nobody wants to help me and it has gone on for so long.”

A spokesman for L&Q said: "The internal flooding was first reported to us on Monday this week (October 24th) and our dedicated maintenance team and external contractors have been working throughout the week to investigate and fix the problem.

"We would like to express our sympathy to Ms Whitaker for the flooding she has experienced, and we are grateful to both of the affected residents for their patience while we resolve the problem."