The bank holiday weekend was looking promising, the weather forecast was very upbeat with blue skies and sunshine predicted throughout the weekend, – what could be better? With relatives due to arrive shortly and staying overnight none of us had expected to be without water: the bank holiday weekend was going to be different to say the least.
Things changed rapidly as on Friday lunchtime, without warning, the water was cut off. It wasn’t an isolated problem: it affected many households in villages in a wide area across the county from Rye Foreign to Staplecross. South East Water responded to the many enquiries by confirming that the problems started in Beckley where a main had burst but they were confident supplies would be resumed later that day and they had contractors working hard to alleviate the problem. It seems that the system failed and the expectant re-supply of water didn’t happen and Saturday came and went.
On Sunday, South East Water issued the following statement:
‘Good afternoon, we have some positive news about the water supply issues in your area as repairs have gone to plan and water is gradually returning although very slowly, to try and avoid any further bursts.
“Water usually flows under high pressure through the pipes, but following any interruption to supply, we have to recharge the pipe network slowly to avoid any further issues.
“When the water returns to the taps, we are asking our customers to please only use it for essential purposes such as flushing toilets as everyone at the same time turning on their taps, putting on washing machines or dishwashers can also put strain on the newly repaired network.
“If you can, please pass on this message to customers via your social media channels.”
South East Water delivered complimentary bottled water supplies to village halls for collection by those who needed them and also delivered supplies to some who were unable to collect it themselves. This alleviated the problem but frustrations were building and social media sites were in overdrive with messages and questions.
At approximately 1pm, we heard a gurgling sound, pipes started rattling, spitting and dribbling then to our delight, the water started flowing out of the tap left on to alert us of any activity. It seemed the system was working normally once more.
Being without water really brings it home as to how lucky we are to have a supply of clean drinking water available at our fingertips. Being without water this weekend was very inconvenient and a situation many will have found very difficult to cope with. Filling the loo cistern with rain water from the barrel outside in the garden made life easier for us until that ran out too.
It was a bank holiday weekend with a difference but when you think how so many people in the developing world countries, and deprived areas across the world, have little or no fresh water, it puts our temporary loss of supply into perspective. Yes it was frustrating and annoying but compared to some…
Image Credits: Nick Forman .