State of emergency in England where tens of thousands of homes have been left without water due to Storm Goretti
Tens of thousands of homes in the counties of Sussex and Kent, south and south east England, were left without water, with supplier South East Water blaming cold weather and Storm Goretti for the problems, with schools and libraries closed for the day.
30,000 homes in Kent and Sussex left without water/PHOTO: Video capture Daily Express
Residents in areas such as Tunbridge Wells, Canterbury and Maidstone were without water for up to five days, writes The Guardian.
Schools and libraries in Kent and Sussex were closed for the day because they are without running water. Queen Victoria Hospital in East Grinstead has had to carry out some consultations virtually.
South East Water blamed the cold weather and Storm Goretti for the supply problems. The company said some pipes broke due to freezing, and the storm made it impossible to treat water at the usual rate.
Residents in Tunbridge Wells were left without water for two weeks at the end of last year after one of the water treatment plants closed. The Drinking Water Inspectorate said the shutdown was foreseen and the company had not made infrastructure updates or adequate testing.
The Prime Minister's official spokesman said that the water problems in the south-east of England are “completely unacceptable” and that ministers hold daily emergency meetings with South East Water and local officials.
“We understand that for residents, all they want is an end to these repeated outages.”he said.
Emma Hardy, UK Minister for Water and Supply Services, said: “I remain very concerned that people in many areas of the South East and South West are experiencing water supply problems following the cold weather and Storm Goretti.
“This is completely unacceptable. I have been meeting with water companies and local resilience forums over the weekend and will be meeting with them again today to restore supplies as quickly as possible, prioritizing vulnerable customers and essential public services.”
The water company apologized to residents for the disruptions. A spokesman said: “Our drinking water tanks in the county are almost empty after a series of leaks and broken pipes caused by the recent cold weather.
As a result, around 30,000 properties in parts of Kent and Sussex may experience no water, intermittent supply or low pressure. These include 16,500 properties in East Grinstead, with the remainder spread across parts of Kent including Tunbridge Wells, Headcorn and intermittently across our system in Maidstone.”
“We apologize for the impact and know how disruptive this is to everyday life. We are doing everything we can to balance the network and restore supply to as many customers as possible.”
