This is why Egerton Park Lake in Bexhill has been drained

The project will replace the sluice valve and repair the outlet chamber. It is expected to take eight days to complete.

A council spokesperson said: "Rother District Council is carrying out the work to improve the ability to control the release of lake water into the sea to maintain a safe water level and reduce the risk of flooding in the park.

"The work is also part of ongoing widespread investigations by the Environment Agency and Southern Water into how Bexhill’s bathing water quality can be improved and may play a small but significant part in helping to reduce levels of contamination in the sea."

Councillor Doug Oliver, leader of Rother District Council, said: “Although it is usual for lakes to have a certain level of contamination from birds, wildfowl and aquatics, recent investigations have shown that water released from Egerton Park Lake may, at times, be negatively affecting Bexhill’s bathing water quality.

“So, we’ve taken the decision to carry out the work to improve the management of water release now, before the main bathing season starts.”

The lake has been drained. The council said this was done slowly over a period of five days to minimise the impact on wildfowl and enable fish -which are all saltwater species – to make their way back out to sea, and to reduce the stirring up of the lake sediment.

The work has been timed so that once it is completed the lake can be refilled on the high tides in the last week of May.

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