South East Water supply problems persist on Christmas Eve

Some households in Kent and Sussex are still without water after a week of disruption.

South East Water said problems were persisting in the Tunbridge Wells and Staplehurst areas of Kent.

Bottled water stations were operated in Pembury, in Kent, and Crowborough, East Sussex, until 16:30 GMT on 24 December.

South East Water said low water pressure in Crawley Down, Turners Hill and Selsfield, West Sussex, was due to a burst in the area.

Thousands of homes have been affected since a thaw on 18 December following freezing weather, which the company said caused pipes to burst.

Douglas Whitfield, South East Water incident director, said: "We are continuing to investigate and repair leaks and as soon as they are discovered, making repairs to bring those customers back into supply as quickly as possible.

"We're still urging customers to use water wisely."

Neil Greatorex, from West Hoathly, West Sussex, said: "Having got our water back yesterday, we have woken up to no water again, only now it's Christmas Eve which makes the situation a whole lot worse.

"South East Water are now saying the completion time is 6am tomorrow.

"This situation is now so stressful it is seriously affecting the people in our village and surrounding areas."

Hartley House Care Home in Cranbrook, Kent, has resorted to using baby wipes to keep residents clean, with staff at "breaking point", according to deputy manager Claire Brodericak.

"This morning we were debating whether to cancel relatives coming for Christmas Day," she said. "But due to Covid isolation we can't do that to the residents."

Businesses have also been hit, with Adam Casettari, manager of the Kings Head in Staplehurst, becoming frustrated.

He said: "Every day it's 'it will be done, it's been fixed'. Even this morning they said it was going to be fixed.

"I came down, tested all the water, still nothing, I've since found out that another pipe has burst somewhere so it's going to be at least another day."

Mid Sussex MP Mims Davies tweeted she had contacted South East Water over the persistent problems.

In a statement South East Water said: "We know that those who have been without water due to the bursts were off for an unacceptable period and we understand the concern this has caused, particularly in the run up to Christmas, and are sorry to all customers who have been affected.

"The network is continuing to stabilise and once that's complete we will write to customers very soon regarding compensation."

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