Residents of a block of flats in Russia are furious after a combination of a broken drain and sub-zero temperatures left them with a tower of frozen sewage in their building that authorities have refused to deal with.

Families living in the building in the town of Serov, in central Russia's Sverdlovsk Oblast region, have lodged a formal complaint with local housing chiefs saying the icicle of frozen urine and faeces is a public health hazard.

They are demanding urgent repair works to resolve the disgusting problem - before temperatures rise and the frozen waste thaws.

A broken drain coupled with sub-zero temperatures caused a tower of frozen raw sewage

Families living in the building in the town of Serov, in central Russia's Sverdlovsk Oblast region, have lodged a formal complaint with local housing chiefs

Residents are demanding urgent repair work is undertaken to resolve the disgusting problem

Residents of the block say the tower of smelly brown ice gets bigger and bigger by the day and they have now taken their case to the public prosecutor and local health watchdogs.

They have also been posting pictures of the problem on social media, which clearly show that the building is in a poor state of repair and filled with frozen excrement.

The problem reportedly started in one of the flats where sewage started leaking from a broken pipe, but residents say it escalated after housing chiefs failed to act.

Those living in the building have also been posting pictures of the problem on social media

The problem started in one of the flats where sewage started leaking from a broken pipe

Residents of the block say the tower of smelly brown ice gets bigger and bigger by the day

They want the problem to be fixed before warmer weather comes, and melts the frozen waste

Resident Lyubov Keller said: 'This is disgusting - it's just frozen urine and faeces.

'There is also a lot of mould in the hall. We try not to let our children out too much, as we are afraid the ceiling might collapse.'

Ms Keller added that during the day the frozen sewage would start to melt making the smell intolerable, severely affecting her asthma.

Despite complaining to the local housing department, health watchdogs and prosecutors, the residents are still waiting for any action to be taken.