Thousands of homes across west Kent remain without water or are experiencing low pressure after a technical failure at a South East Water treatment works, with bottled water stations continuing to operate for affected residents. Up to 7,000 properties in Tunbridge Wells, Hawkhurst, Sandhurst and surrounding areas have been impacted by the disruption, which began on Saturday 18 July. South East Water said a temporary instrument failure at its Tunbridge Wells Water Treatment Works caused the site to briefly shut down. Although the treatment works is now operating again, the company said storage levels remain low and supplies have not yet fully recovered. In an update issued on Sunday morning (19 July), the company said: “A temporary instrument failure at our Tunbridge Wells water treatment works caused a brief shutdown. “While the site is now stable, low storage levels from this disruption and high demand mean we cannot pump water to some areas, particularly on higher ground. “Consequently, up to 7,000 properties face low pressure, no water, or intermittent supply. “To ensure a stable, continuous flow, we must allow tanks to replenish. “We continue to deliver bottled water to priority services register customers, and bottled water stations are open. “We are very sorry to all customers impacted by this issue.”
Two separate water problems
Tunbridge Wells MP Mike Martin said the area had been affected by two separate incidents. Around 800 homes in Hawkhurst and neighbouring villages were left without water after a major trunk water main burst, with repairs complicated by the pipe being buried around four metres underground beneath a power cable. A second outage affected parts of Tunbridge Wells, particularly higher ground around Forest Road, after equipment failed at the Pembury Water Treatment Works. Writing on social media, Mr Martin said he intended to raise the latest disruption with South East Water’s new chief executive. He also urged vulnerable residents or those registered with the Priority Services Register who had not received bottled water to get in touch.
Bottled water stations open
South East Water has opened bottled water distribution points at:
- Tesco, Pembury Road, Tunbridge Wells
- Tunbridge Wells Rugby Football Club, St Mark’s Recreation Ground, Frant Road
Both stations reopened at 7am on Sunday to support affected residents.
Fresh blow after winter water crisis
The latest disruption comes just months after South East Water faced widespread criticism following a series of major outages. In December, around 24,000 properties in Tunbridge Wells lost their water supply because of a disinfection issue at the Pembury treatment works. A month later, around 30,000 homes across Kent and Sussex were affected by burst pipes and power failures linked to severe cold weather and Storm Goretti. The company’s handling of those incidents ultimately led to the resignations of its chairman Chris Train and chief executive David Hinton. South East Water has also confirmed it is in discussions with lenders over new financing after spending £55 million responding to the winter supply crises. Engineers continue working to restore normal service, with customers advised that supplies may remain intermittent until storage tanks have fully replenished.
