FRESH complaints from Okehampton residents about recent road surface dressing work in Station Road erupted this week with claims a sea of black tar was running down the busy road.
After another day of sweltering temperatures on Monday the tar in the road began to melt, causing problems for residents and motorists alike.
Michelle Mossman, owner of the Meadowlea Guest House in Station Road, said the situation was ?absolutely appalling?.
Mrs Mossman said tar had ruined the new carpets she was having laid in the guesthouse.
?The cars are sticking to the road and the cars that are parked along the road are covered in tar. It is not good enough,? she said.
Mrs Mossman, said she had videotaped the tar in the road at its worst on Monday afternoon, so she had a record of the extent of the problem.
Nathan Feaver, who also lives in Station Road, described trying to drive on the road on Monday as ?absolute chaos?.
?The road had melted and viscous tar was everywhere. The road resembled a giant flypaper,? said Mr Feaver.
He said the wheels of his car were coated in tar, while any pedestrian trying to cross the road collected the sticky tar on their shoes and clothing.
?The works to Station Road have been poor to say the least, and it would seem that if any warm weather is forecast, we should avoid the area to prevent ourselves becoming permanently adhered to the surface as it melts and slowly runs down the hill,? Mr Feaver said.
Stephen Chamberlain, another Station Road resident, said he had also experienced problems driving up the road to get home.
?Everywhere I look there is black tar. My shoes are covered in tar. The whole place looks a state,? he said.
?They must have put the thinnest amount of top layer they can find on it,? he said.
?I am surprised that it can be allowed to go on without remedial work being done,? he added.
Nick Pogodin, deputy local services officer, said the council had carried out emergency work late on Monday afternoon to lay stones on the road, which had improved the road condition.
He said he had been to Station Road and acknowledged the problems tar had caused in the road.
?It was really sticky. You could not walk across it and it was like driving through melted butter,? he said.
Mr Pogodin admitted there had been ?something wrong with the original process?.
But he said the exact problem had to be identified before the correct remedial work could be carried out.
Mr Pogodin said before the latest stretch of hot weather, the council intended to resurface dress the centre of the road, but the surface had deteriorated so badly in the sun, that other options now had to be considered.
He apologised to residents and said that as soon as the council had identified the exact problem with the surface dressing process, it would carry out work to restore the condition of the road.
A fortnight ago, residents in Station Road complained the work by contractors South West Highways had turned their road into a dust track.
The complaints arose after a period of warm weather caused tar to come up through the surface. Stone chippings which had been put down on top were cracking up and scattering dust along the road.