Some households in East Sussex have been without water on Christmas Day after Southern Water struggled to restore service following a burst water main. The company reported 'very low levels' at Fairlight reservoir, which had reached its final reserves.
Areas affected include postcodes TN34, TN35, TN37 and TN38, with customers at higher elevations most impacted. Southern Water said fewer than 100 customers in Hastings reported low pressure or intermittent supply.
The incident follows a burst mains pipe in a woodland north of Hastings on Tuesday, which the company raced to fix. A short power outage on Thursday at Brede water supply works then affected remaining reservoir levels.
Southern Water set up a bottled water station at Pelham Place car park in Hastings, open until 10pm on Christmas Day. Tankers were deployed to inject water into the network, with gradual improvements expected.
Helena Dollimore, Labour MP for Hastings and Rye, criticised Southern Water, citing 'years of neglect' and previous outages, including a five-day disruption in May 2024. She urged the company to improve infrastructure and provide extra water to local businesses.
