Thousands of residents have been adversely impacted, businesses have had to close and schools have shut.
Severn Trent issued this statement at 5:40 pm 19 July:
‘We’d like to sincerely apologise to everyone in the Nottinghamshire area who has had issues with their water supplies over the last 24hrs. We’re really sorry that you’ve had to deal with these problems.
‘It’s clear that we have had a really tricky 24 hours within parts of Nottinghamshire, where we’ve seen equipment failures and technical issues, which has caused supply issues in some areas.
‘We’re pleased to be able to share that all of these equipment issues are now resolved and we’re doing everything we can to get everything back to normal as soon as possible.
‘Actual stores of water aren’t the issue here – we have plenty of raw water available and we’re currently pumping more water into the Notts area than is being used.
‘The issue is that the pipes and the storage tanks, all need to fill back up. Until then, the pumps won’t work as they should as there’s not enough water for some of them to work, and so water isn’t getting to the higher points of the area which is why the supply issues are localised to a few communities in the Huthwaite, Sutton in Ashfield and Kirkby in Ashfield areas.
‘We know just how frustrating it is for these customers and we are doing a series of targeted measures to help them. Firstly, we have bottled water stations open at:
· The Market Place, Huthwaite, NG17 2QX
· Oval Post Office, Sutton In Ashfield, NG17 2FR
‘Secondly, we’re injecting water from tankers directly into the higher points in the area to try and get water back on from a different angle for those customers. Thirdly, we’ve got 20 tankers that are working across the patch, bringing water into the area from elsewhere, and filling things up directly. All of this is helping things to get running as normal again and all hopefully resolved tonight.
‘We have two incident rooms manned 24/7 working on the issue, one in our headquarters in Coventry and one and locally in Nottinghamshire and we have lots of people working really hard around the clock, keeping a close eye on progress.
‘We are also aware that there are isolated pockets of customers who are seeing their water come on and go off again. We’re really sorry and know how frustrating this is. It’s due to us having to constantly move water around the pipe network to keep levels up. Of course, demand for water is very high at the moment, and people are using it incredibly quickly – almost as quickly as we’re pumping it in.
‘What will help to get the system filled up more quickly is if we can all use water only where we really need to. So, putting aside the hosepipes and leaving watering the garden for a day or two will make a massive difference. Typically, the average household uses 145 litres per person per day and less than half of that is for drinking, cooking, hygiene and essential use.
‘That said, we want to let you know that we absolutely understand just how difficult this is for you, especially in this heat, and reassure you that we are working flat out until everything is back to normal.’
Leader of Ashfield District Council – Jason Zadrozny has called for an independent enquiry after the latest failure by Severn Trent Water.
Severn Trent claimed this morning (19.07.21) that the water supply would be restored by mid morning to areas like Carsic and Huthwaite.
The problem got worse however with residents in Kirkby, New Cross and Sutton complaining about having no water.
Sutton Academy closed, shops like Poppy’s Pet Parlour on Mansfield Road and the laundrette on Lime Street were forced to close.
The New Cross Pub on Outram Street had to make an emergency trip to cash and carry after their water supply ran out.
They are considering shutting until the water supply resumes.
Councillor Zadrozny said: “Severn Trent have seriously let us down. On 31 May last year we received robust assurances that in the event of the water supply being affected – they had an emergency procedure to help residents within 2 hours. This included locating water supplies in the areas affected. This has clearly not happened AGAIN.
“We contacted ST yesterday and this morning. The Customer Service has been appalling. Their call back facility didn’t call back and at approximately 1pm they stopped the pretence of even attempting to answer incoming calls.
“I have called for an urgent Independent enquiry into what went wrong, how the problem was allowed to escalate and why residents were fed false information.
“Yet again, Severn Trent have let us down at the hottest time of the year. Just like they did last year during lockdown. Our councillors have been out delivering water to the most vulnerable and to those who have been pinged and have to isolate.
“We have been assured that our water will be back to normal imminently. They did say that this morning however and ST’s appalling service, coupled with the terrible communication and failure to deal with this issue has created a dangerous situation for many thousands of residents.”
