Water crisis continues for a fifth day in the South East with 2,500 people impacted
ITV Meridian's Malcolm Shaw reports on how the community is coping with the crisis
Around 2,500 people faced another day without water - and for some, it was day five.
Communities in East Sussex and Kent have been trying to find ways to cope during a heatwave and low to no water pressure.
South East Water continues to struggle to meet peak demand in the hot weather - a situation made worse for many by burst mains.
Areas affected include Lewes, Wadhurst, Rotherfield and Crowborough.
Incident manager Steve Andrews said: “We are continuing to see very high demand for water in Kent and Sussex. Yesterday, we produced 654 megalitres of tap water, when the usual figure is 540.
“All our water treatment works and water sources available to us are being used, but with the demand still so high, our treated water storage reservoirs are not refilling enough to keep all our customers in supply.
“This means up to 2,500 customers, mainly in the Wadhurst area may be without water or have low pressure.
“We are working with schools to try to get alternate water to them. We also have bottled water collection stations set up which will be open from 9.30am today. Details are on our website.
“Customers on our priority services register are receiving deliveries of bottled water from our Customer Care Team.
“We are doing everything we can, including moving water around our network. However, we are continuing to ask customers who do have tap water supplies to only use it for essential tasks such as hygiene, hydration and cooking. Please don’t use hosepipes and sprinklers as this drains the system very quickly.”
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