Drive-through water stations ready to keep Sussex water company staff and customers safe

Southern Water has developed drive-through stations to ensure bottled water can be distributed safely in the event of a burst pipe.
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The company, which supplies water across Sussex, is in charge of distributing bottled water to customers in the event of a mains failure, and has changed the process in response to Covid-19.

The new method was tested at its base in Falmer, when 40 staff members from Southern Water, Water Direct, MTS and Double R traffic management collaborated to practice using drive-through bottled water collection points.

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The initiative was taken after a mains burst in Hastings at the beginning of lockdown. In response to the incident more than 35,000 litres of bottles water were delivered to customers who required it. Fortunately, there was no need to implement the drive-through delivery system due to speedy repairs.

Southern Water staff practicing the drive-through water stationSouthern Water staff practicing the drive-through water station
Southern Water staff practicing the drive-through water station

Tom Hales, Southern Water Emergency Planner highlighted the difficulties of transporting bottled water to an increasing number of customers who are unable to leave their house, due to the pandemic. With previous water stations being at risk of breaking social distancing rules, Southern Water were forced to create the drive-through solution.

Mr Hale added: “Even with lockdown easing, social distancing is still key to keeping customers and Southern Water employees safe, and the only way to ensure we can run a drive-through bottled water station under those circumstance is to practice it as close to real life as possible.”

Paul Riordan, Operational Resilience and Response Manager, praised the efficiency of the water station drill: “Conditions were terrible but our participants kept their enthusiasm, and we have learned a lot about the challenges of doing things in a completely new way.”

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The drive-through stations, if required, are set up around lorries containing substantial emergency water supplies, with traffic management signage visible to ensure safety. As cars arrive a team member will check with the driver, from a distance through the window, how many people are in the household. This information is passed to a loader who can transfer the right number of bottles into the car boot, and the car leaves.

Southern Water staff can put bottled water straight into the car boot at the drive-through water stationSouthern Water staff can put bottled water straight into the car boot at the drive-through water station
Southern Water staff can put bottled water straight into the car boot at the drive-through water station

Mr Riordan added: “We aim to keep customers in supply at all times and everyone in the company works hard to achieve that. But with thousands of miles of pipeline and hundreds of water supply works and storage reservoirs, there can never be a guarantee. By drilling and practicing, we try to mitigate any problems and demonstrate to customers that we are a company that cares about their well-being, have alternatives plans in place during Covid-19, and is always ready to respond in a professional manner.”