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A significant disruption has left tens of thousands of residents across Sussex and Kent without water as the new week begins. Kent County Council has escalated the situation by declaring a major incident following widespread outages that persisted throughout the weekend. The shortages affected multiple areas, predominantly around East Grinstead, Frant, and Tunbridge Wells, with South East Water attributing the problems to several factors including the impact of Storm Goretti and a power failure at one of its pumping stations.
Bottled water has been distributed through designated collection points to support those affected by the disruption. South East Water has set up several water stations in East Grinstead, opening from 9 a.m., to provide relief. While some customers were informed that normal water supply might not be restored until Tuesday, urgent efforts are underway to manage the crisis. Locals have expressed frustration over the prolonged lack of running water, emphasizing the challenges of maintaining hygiene and daily routines under these conditions.
Several residents spoke to local radio about their experiences during the outage. Eileen from Tunbridge Wells described the situation as “a nightmare,” especially since she lives alone, and noted her reliance on bottled water deliveries amidst the ongoing inconvenience. Likewise, Krys O’Brien from East Grinstead criticized the sporadic communication from South East Water and described the weekend as “miserable,” highlighting the absence of a clear timeline for restoration. Meanwhile, Heather Pratt from Forest Row stated her supply resumed on Monday morning but expressed skepticism about using Storm Goretti as the primary cause.
Kent County Council’s leader, Linden Kemkaran, announced the declaration of a major incident due to increasing numbers of households being affected and to prepare for any further complications. This water shortage has led to the temporary closure of several schools and public libraries in the region, while the Queen Victoria Hospital has moved some appointments to virtual formats. Additional measures include water tankers delivering essential supplies and encouraging hospital staff who can work remotely to coordinate with their managers. Political representatives have criticized South East Water’s handling of the disruption. Mike Martin, the Liberal Democrat MP for Tunbridge Wells, commented on the accountability issues related to privatized water services and urged company leaders to take stronger control of the situation. In a statement released Monday morning, South East Water apologized for the continued outages and assured customers that efforts to restore supply are ongoing, although full recovery is not expected until Tuesday at the earliest
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