Concerns as Cotswold leak sees vulnerable people without water for 24 hours
Villages in and around Chipping Campden had low water pressure or no supply at all over the weekend.
There are serious concerns that vulnerable Cotswold residents were “left without water for more than 24 hours” as three lorry loads of bottles were sent for customers.
Villages in and around Chipping Campden were with low water pressure or no supply at all over the weekend after a major leak.
Mickleton had low pressure all day Saturday and no supply Sunday morning. Campden and surrounding villages such as Ebrington, Paxford and Hidcote, the supply went off at around 4pm on Saturday, August 16 and was off until midnight on Sunday, August 17.
The leak is understood to have been caused by a water mains break near Nineveh Farm between Campden and Mickleton on Saturday.
Once repaired, Thames Water had to repressurise the system.
Councillor Tom Stowe, who represents the area at Cotswold District Council, was helping direct traffic at the very busy temporary bottled water distribution site at Chipping Campden School.
He said: “Once the severity of the situation became known, Thames Water implemented a plan to run a bottled water collection station in Chipping Campden.
“Following discussions with myself and Chipping Campden School it was decided that the best option was to have one dedicated site at the school.
“Three lorry loads of bottled water were delivered. With the help of Thames Water and Chipping Campden School staff, the site was up and running by noon.
“I would like to thank the staff from Thames Water and in particular staff from the school who gave up their Sunday to help get things organised and up and running.
“Unfortunately, there were shortcomings from Thames Water regarding the distribution of water to ‘priority customers’.
“It became clear that these deliveries to some of the more vulnerable residents were inconsistent with many not receiving any delivery despite being without mains water for over 24 hours.
“This is totally unacceptable and I’ll be contacting Thames Water to discuss this in the coming days.”
Thames Water apologised to customers for the inconvenience caused.
“We’re sorry to customers in the Chipping Camden and surrounding areas who experienced low pressure or no water between 16 to 18 August following a burst main and further issues on our network,” a Thames Water spokesperson said.
“On Saturday, we deployed tankers to help support our supplies to the area. The repair was completed on Sunday, with water gradually returning to the local network.
“To support customers in the meantime, we set up a bottled water station and prioritised deliveries to those on our Priority Services Register, including customers who are medically dependent on water or have mobility needs.
“We know how disruptive it is to be without water, and we apologise for any inconvenience caused.”