Thousands hit by more South East Water outages

Thousands of properties in East Sussex are either without water or are experiencing low pressure.

South East Water (SEW) announced a disruption to supplies in the Heathfield, Sandy Cross and the surrounding areas on Wednesday, resulting from "an unforeseen issue with planned works to our network" including "a complex leak repair".

The company apologised to customers still affected on Thursday and said it expected service to "return by early afternoon".

A similar incident in Horam on Wednesday evening has since been resolved.

An SEW spokesperson said: "Due to a complex leak repair and network connection, our high-lift pumps stopped working at our water treatment works, which impacted the ability to pump water to Heathfield, Sandy Cross and the surrounding areas.

"This, coupled with the increased demand for water in the continued hot, dry weather, means drinking water storage levels in the area are extremely low.

"This has impacted approximately 2,200 properties on high ground in the Heathfield area, and around 4,145 in the Sandy Cross area."

Resident Pamela Oram said she had had water delivered to at 23:30 BST on Wednesday.

She said she had water at home but it was "very low", adding: "It just takes a long time to get out and I'm a bit worried because cisterns get airblocks and things."

Where problems persist, SEW said it would be delivering bottled water to all customers on its priority service register.

It added that bottle collection stations will also be available, located at Heathfield Community Centre on Sheepsetting Lane, Mill Road car park and the Tower recreation ground on Tower Street.

The latest disruption comes as the heavily criticised company's new CEO starts work, setting out a series of pledges to "improve day-to-day performance and rebuild trust with customers".

John Halsall began the role on Thursday, following regulatory approval.

His predecessor, David Hinton – who had a salary of £400,000 and was awarded a £115,000 bonus last year – announced his resignation in May and left the firm following a handover period.

Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, X, and on Instagram and listen to BBC Radio Sussex on Sounds. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.