A toy car, a dog bowl and a traffic cone are some of the bizarre items found deep inside sewers by workers.
The discoveries were made using new AI-assisted analysis of CCTV footage to improve sewer inspections.
The collection of strange finds also included a trolley wheel, a hand brush, a football and even a tyre that somehow made its way underground.
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They were found during inspections by South West Water, SWW teams using new AI-assisted analysis of CCTV footage.
Traditionally, teams use specialised CCTV cameras lowered into pipes to record thousands of hours of footage, which technicians and office staff then manually reviewed to locate faults, structural issues, and blockages.
This process has now been enhanced by AI systems trained to automatically label and highlight objects and anomalies in the footage.
Training the AI involves processing tens of thousands of images from the network, as reported by Need To Know.
Andy Pettifer, wastewater operations manager at SWW, said: “Finding a toy car or a football in a sewer might raise a few eyebrows but it’s a serious issue that our teams are facing each year.
“Our sewers are designed for wastewater only.
“Anything else can cause blockages that affect homes, businesses, and the environment.
“So please, only flush the three Ps and if it’s not pee, poo or paper, please put it in the bin or dispose of your waste responsibly.”
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