25,000 homes still without water in Kent and Sussex as regulator raises concerns
South East Water is blaming outages on burst pipes and power cuts caused by Storm Goretti
Thousands of homes across Kent and Sussex remain without water as supply interruptions caused by burst pipes and power cuts enter their fourth day.
South East Water confirmed that 25,000 properties are still affected following damage linked to Storm Goretti. Services were restored to some areas on Tuesday, including Loose in Maidstone, Blean near Canterbury, Headcorn, West Kingsdown, and parts of Tunbridge Wells. Drinking water for around 16,500 properties in East Grinstead is expected to return this afternoon.
An Ofwat spokesperson expressed "concern" over the ongoing situation and stated the regulator will "review all the evidence" before deciding on potential enforcement action to ensure South East Water has met its legal obligations to customer care.
South East Water's incident manager Matthew Dean said:
“Around 25,000 customers in Kent and Sussex remain affected by no water or intermittent supplies following the recent cold weather and a subsequent breakout of leaks and bursts across Kent and Sussex, which has resulted in our drinking water storage tanks running very low.”
Bottled water distribution sites continue to operate in Tunbridge Wells, East Grinstead, and Maidstone, with location details available on the South East Water website.
Mr Dean added that support is being prioritised for vulnerable residents:
"Our customer care team is delivering bottled water to the customers on our Priority Services Register who are most in need.
"We are also supporting hospitals with tankers and providing bottled water for care homes, schools, medical care providers and to support livestock."
The company has faced scrutiny recently, with chief executive David Hinton questioned by MPs over his handling of last month's outage that affected 24,000 properties in Tunbridge Wells. Following this, the Environment Food and Rural Affairs Committee chairman Alistair Carmichael MP wrote to Mr Hinton questioning the "accuracy and intent" of his evidence.
Ofwat has an active investigation into South East Water's supply resilience. The regulator said it is working closely with the Drinking Water Inspectorate to align efforts on managing the latest supply issues.
"We will review all of the evidence before taking a decision on what further action may be required into whether the company has met its legal obligations set out in its licence relating to customer care, including with further potential enforcement action," an Ofwat spokesperson said.
South East Water says it's working to address leaks and bursts and has apologised to affected residents.