South East Water Faces Public Anger Over Supply Failures Affecting 18,000 Kent Properties
Residents across Kent have voiced considerable anger and frustration as widespread water supply issues continue to plague thousands of properties during a period of intense heat. South East Water (SEW) attributes the outages, affecting 18,000 properties, to unprecedented demand, urging customers to conserve water for essential use only.
Greg Lawrence of Whitstable, queuing for bottled water, highlighted the public's exasperation. "We've had a wet May and several days of heat, and this crisis happens. We woke up today without water. We can't do washing or flush the toilet, it's not nice especially in this heat," Lawrence stated, expressing a lack of confidence in SEW's contingency plans for extreme weather.
The disruption has severely impacted local businesses. Jeff Higgins, a jam maker in Wye, reported that his company has been unable to produce jam since Monday, as their processes rely heavily on water for steam cooking and pasteurisation. This halt in production has led to direct financial losses and considerable frustration for the business.
Concerns were also raised by Lee Ferris, a priority customer from Herne Bay, who, despite his diabetes, had not received any water deliveries for days. He reported that when water did briefly return, it was discoloured. Lucy, also from Herne Bay, detailed the difficulties of daily life without water, particularly for animal care.
Sir Roger Gale, MP for Herne Bay, condemned the ongoing disruptions as "unacceptable," pointing to a systemic "lack of investment in infrastructure" as a core reason for recurring failures. He called for immediate solutions beyond long-term reservoir projects.
SEW stated that storage reservoirs in Whitstable and Herne Bay have reached critical levels, noting that on a single recent Tuesday, the company pumped 660 million litres of water, over 100 million litres above its daily average. The company has faced prior scrutiny; both its chair and chief executive are departing following multiple severe supply failures. Regulator Ofwat has proposed a £22 million fine against SEW for issues impacting 286,000 people in Kent and Sussex between 2020 and 2023, including previous incidents where up to 30,000 households were without water for days.
