Supply issue – Fairlight and Hastings, East Sussex

UPDATE: 8.45AM, Saturday, June 17

Customers in Fairlight and Hastings should have their water back. If you don’t, please call us on 0330 303 0368. It’s normal when water returns to experience air in the system, bubbles or disolouration. Here’s what to expect: 

• Discoloured water from your taps is normal after a supply interruption. This is usually temporary and disappears once the network settles.   
• If the water is cloudy and white, try leaving it in a glass for a few minutes to see if it clears, this will be air trapped in the water as the pipes refilled.   
• Chlorine smell or taste. This is perfectly normal and comes from the small amounts of chlorine that remain in your supply known as 'chlorine residual'.  
• If the water has a brown or black colour, run your tap for a few minutes and it should clear. If this doesn't work, turn the tap off, wait 20 minutes and try again. It’s fine to use your water as normal when your water runs clear.    
• Sometimes after a network has been emptied air locks can occur either in our pipes or customers’ – running taps for a short while can help bring water through.   

• It’s not unusual to see an increased number of external leaks after an incident like this, so if you should see something, please let us know -  Report a leak in a public place (southernwater.co.uk)   

If you were without water for an extended period of time, we’ll be calculating rebates. We’ll contact you directly before 7 July. Information about guaranteed standards of service is on our website.  

We’re really sorry for the distress and inconvenience this situation caused, particularly during the hot weather.  If you are concerned or are a vulnerable customer and need our help, please call us on 0330 303 0368.  

UPDATE 19:30 June 16

We are seeing more and more customers in Fairlight and Hastings have their water return however you could see intermittent pressure for a little while longer.  

If you leave your house today, please make sure that taps are switched off so that when water does return you don’t experience an accidental flood. 

We’ve completed further deliveries to homes and local area and will be closing our bottled water station at Asda at 8pm. 

If you are concerned or are a vulnerable customer and need access to bottled water as a priority, please call us on 0330 303 0368.  

Thank you for your patience while we worked to fix the issue and get your water back. 

UPDATE 16:00 June 16

Water levels and pressures have risen more quickly than anticipated which means we are hopeful that customers in Fairlight and Hastings could see their water return during the evening. 

If you leave your house today, please make sure that taps are turned off so when water does return, you don’t experience an accidental flood. Here’s what you can expect as water returns: 

• Discoloured water from your taps is normal after a supply interruption. This is usually temporary and disappears once the network settles.   
• If the water is cloudy and white, try leaving it in a glass for a few minutes to see if it clears, this will be air trapped in the water as the pipes refilled.   
• Chlorine smell or taste. This is perfectly normal and comes from the small amounts of chlorine that remain in your supply known as 'chlorine residual'.  
• If the water has a brown or black colour, run your tap for a few minutes and it should clear. If this doesn't work, turn the tap off, wait 20 minutes and try again. It’s fine to use your water as normal when your water runs clear.    
• Sometimes after a network has been emptied air locks can occur either in our pipes or customers’ – running taps for a short while can help bring water through. 
• It’s not unusual to see an increased number of external leaks after an incident like this, so if you should see something, please let us know -  Report a leak in a public place (southernwater.co.uk)   

If you are concerned or are a vulnerable customer and need access to bottled water as a priority, please call us on 0330 303 0368. Our bottled water station remains open at ASDA Battle Road, TN37 7AA 

Thank you for your ongoing patience, we’re sorry for the impact this incident has had.  

UPDATE 11:05 June 16

We’re really sorry that a small number of customers in Fairlight and the Hastings area are without water or have low pressure. 

Our bottled water station at Pelham Place Car Park will be closing shortly, and we’ll be moving to Asda. 

• ASDA Battle Rd, St Leonards, Hastings, Saint Leonards-on-sea TN37 7AA - OPEN 
• Pelham Place Car Park, Carlisle Parade, Hastings TN34 3AD – CLOSES AT 12 NOON 

 If you are concerned or need our help, please call us on 0330 303 0368. We’re sorry for the ongoing distress this situation is causing 

UPDATE 08:50 June 16 

In addition to continuing to deliver water to your home or local area, we now have a bottled water station open at: 

• Pelham Place Car Park, Carlisle Parade, Hastings TN34 3AD 

If you are concerned or need our help, please call us on 0330 303 0368.  

We’re sorry for the ongoing distress this situation is causing.

UPDATE 07:10 June 16 

We’re sorry that customers in parts of Fairlight and Hastings are waking up to no water. This has been caused by a pump failure at our Darwell Pumping Station and Reservoir in East Sussex. 

 The pump has now been fixed, and we are starting to see water levels rise, however it’s unlikely that you will get your water back today.  

Bottled water deliveries to your home or local area will be continuing throughout the day.  As an additional precautionary measure we’ll also have a bottled water station open this morning if you want to pick up more. We’ll be updating the website shortly with details. 

 If you are concerned or need our help, please call us on 0330 303 0368. We’re sorry for the ongoing distress this situation is causing 

UPDATE: 21:20 June 15

We’ll be working through the night to restore service to customers in parts of Fairlight and Hastings. The loss of water supply has been caused by a pump failure at our Darwell Pumping Station and Reservoir in East Sussex. 

Bottled water deliveries are continuing. If you are concerned or need our help, please call us on 0330 303 0368. 

We’re really sorry for the distress this is causing and will provide a further update in the morning. 

UPDATE: 19:00 June 15

Due to a pump failure at Darwell Pumping Station and Reservoir in East Sussex, a small number of customers in parts of Fairlight and Hastings may be experiencing low water pressure or a loss of supply. Our teams are onsite and doing everything they can to fix the problem. 

We’re very sorry for the disruption and distress this is causing, particularly during the hot weather.  

Because numbers are very small and largely in a very localised area, we are working to deliver water directly to impacted customers. We’ll be prioritising deliveries to our most vulnerable customers on our priority services register first.  

Please check our website and social media channels for updates. Please call us on 0330 303 0368 if you need any further help. 

While using water wisely during the current hot weather is really important, we want to reassure customers that this is not related in any way to supply and demand issue that South East Water are currently experiencing in areas of Kent and Sussex.