Thousands of households in Kent are set to have their water supply restored after enduring five days without, but with a critical caveat: the water is not safe to drink unless boiled first.
Boil Notice Issued as Water Returns
South East Water (SEW) has issued an urgent 'boil water notice' affecting approximately 24,000 properties in and around Tunbridge Wells. The area has suffered from either a complete loss of water or very low pressure since the evening of Saturday, 29 November.
The company announced that water would begin returning to the network from midday on Wednesday, 3 December. However, they confirmed that the water quality problems which originally forced the shutdown of the Pembury water treatment works had re-emerged.
Dr Neil Hudson, SEW's Head of Water Quality, explained the difficult decision. "We have seen a recurrence of the water quality issues that caused the initial shutdown," he said. "We are currently unable to produce drinking water from the Pembury works that meets the strict regulatory standards."
A Compromise for Basic Sanitation
Faced with customers who have been unable to perform basic hygiene tasks for days, the utility has chosen to pump water into the system for limited use. This means residents can finally flush toilets and take showers, but the water must be boiled before any consumption, including drinking, cooking, or brushing teeth.
The company has apologised repeatedly for the prolonged disruption. The incident was triggered by what SEW described as a "bad batch" of chemicals at the Pembury treatment plant.
To support affected residents, three bottled water stations will remain open until 10pm. These are located at:
- Tunbridge Wells Sports Centre
- Odeon Cinema, Knights Way
- RCP Parking
Political and Public Backlash Grows
The crisis has sparked significant anger and political condemnation. Liberal Democrat MP Mike Martin told the BBC the situation represented "a total failure of leadership" and called for the resignation of SEW's chief executive, Dave Hinton.
During Prime Minister's Questions, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer described the situation as "shocking," noting that promises from the water company to fix the problem had been broken.
The Consumer Council for Water (CCW) has demanded a thorough investigation into the handling of the incident. CCW chief executive Mike Keil stated, "Customers in and around Tunbridge Wells have seen their water bills rise significantly this year and in return they expect to see the service improve – not get worse."
Despite the frustration, community spirit has provided a silver lining. Resident Darren Carpenter expressed anger at SEW's "broken promises" but found "hope" in seeing neighbours support one another during the difficult time.
SEW has advised that a detailed map and list of affected postcodes are available on their website for concerned customers.
