South East Water - what we know so far: How long will Sussex residents be without water? What areas are affected? Where can I get water?

According to the BBC, 15,000 South East Water customers have had supply issues.

Posting on Twitter on Monday (December 19) morning, South East Water said: “We’re very sorry to customers without water this morning. Due to the snow and ice thawing rapidly, we have seen an increase in the number of burst water mains. Our teams are working to get water supplies restored.”

David Hinton, South East Water chief executive officer, said: “We are very sorry to our customers who are without water but we are doing everything we can in this incredibly fast-moving and challenging situation.

"Although we planned for this, we cannot predict when and where pipes will burst and are reacting as quickly as possible.”

West Sussex County Council also announced the issue on Twitter, saying: “We are aware that people in West Sussex continue to be without water today. Follow @sewateruk for updates on their work to restore water supply.”

How long will Sussex be without water?

On Monday, South East Water, which supplies drinking water to 2.2m people in in Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire, said the outages were expected up to last up to 48 hours.

But the issues have now continued into a fifth day.

The latest statement from South East Water said: “Customers in Sussex should see their supplies return throughout the evening (of December 21) into tomorrow morning. The Crowborough bottled water station has been fully restocked with bottled water, and the Arlington tanks have been refilled.

“For our customers in Kent, we are sorry you remain without water. The Tonbridge Water Treatment Works was repaired and switched on yesterday, increasing the amount of water available in the area.

“Leaks and bursts continue to be repaired on our pipes and in private properties, and we have redirected water around our network, which is now beginning to push more water towards Tunbridge Wells and the storage tank.

“We’re really sorry for the ongoing disruptions to your supply.”

What areas are affected?

South East Water’s interactive map shows that customers in Crowborough, Handcross, Balcombe, Pease Pottage, Crawley Down, Turners Hill, West Hoathly, Sharpthorne, Ardingly, Mayfield, Wadhurst, Bells Yew Green, and Newbridge are without water.

Many leaks have also been reported in Hurstpierpoint, Burgess Hill, Haywards Heath, East Grinstead, Newick, Eastbourne, Seaford, Pevensey, Bexhill, Hastings, Battle, and Ringmer.

Where can I get water?

West Sussex residents have been stocking up on bottled water in East Grinstead.

South East Water opened a bottled water station at The Gearon Pavilion in Saint Hill Road, East Grinstead.

Additional bottled water stations opened in East and West Sussex on Tuesday (December 20) morning.

These bottled water stations are located at:

– Haywards Heath Rugby Football Club, Whitemans Green, Cuckfield, Haywards Heath, RH17 5HX: 10.30am – 9pm

– Crowborough Beacon Golf Club, Beacon Rd, Crowborough, TN6 1UJ: 10.30am – 9pm

Another bottled water station was opened by South East Water yesterday morning.

This bottled water stations is located at:

– Beacon Academy, North Beeches Road, Crowborough, TN6 2AS: 9.30am – 9pm