A man buried a footpath under tons of earth with a mechanical digger after arguing with neighbours. Residents of Stormtown in the Taff Bargoed Valley said that the route - a set of concrete steps - was an integral link between the tight-knit hillside community and the village of Trelewis below and has been in use since houses were first built there in the 1920s.
But, late last month, the steps were covered over with soil in "a complete fit of temper" by skip hire boss Christopher Rees, who bought the land on which they are situated two years ago. It's the latest incident in a long-running dispute between Rees and locals who say they're at their wits' end from being woken by lorries and heavy machinery operating on the site "at all hours of the day and night."
One local, who asked not to be named, said: "Stormtown is a really tight-knit community and those that live here tend to stay put. Very few decide to move elsewhere." She added that the steps were a "claimed right of way" and feature on the deeds to many of the properties in the area.
