Mystery as River Cole in Swindon turns blue overnight

The River Cole is a tributary of the River Thames and flows east of the town centre in the Walcot area but also crosses other parts of the town.

Yet on a daily walk around the Covingham stretch of the river on Sunday morning, local man Graham Kew noticed something peculiar.

The river had changed colour overnight and is now an unnatural shade of blue.

The water was blue on Sunday. (Image: Graham Kew)

“This morning it's turned blue and I believe that it could be some chemical spillage,” Graham said.

“It's not the first time over the years that I've seen the river sporting different colours, I can't imagine the damage that it's doing to the environment.”

The river changed colour overnight on Saturday into Sunday. (Image: Graham Kew)

After returning to the same spot on Monday morning, the 17-year-old was shocked to find that the river had returned to its usual colour.

“I had a look this morning [Monday] and it is clear now,” he said.

“Whatever the discharge was, it has now gone, but I will be keeping an eye on it over the coming days.”

The Environment Agency has confirmed it is now aware of the issue and will be looking into the possible causes.

Blackmore Close after the flooding of Storm Babet. (Image: Dale Heenan)

In July of 2007, the River Cole burst its banks and flooded the Covingham area and Covingham Drive immediately south of the river, leading to extensive remedial works being carried out.

These works were aimed at reducing the risk and effect of future flooding in the area but there have been some issues in recent months.

When Storm Babet hit Swindon on October 20, Covingham was one of the worst affected areas as the River Cole’s levels rose throughout the day.

Heavy rainfall flooded several nearby streets including Blackmore Close and Peregrine Close which were badly affected.

A flood alert for the river was issued then and was then reissued for the same area on November 2, when Storm Ciarán struck the town.