Southern Water Crisis: Thousands of Homes Without Water in Hampshire

Tens of thousands of homes in Hampshire are facing a water supply crisis due to a “technical issue” at Southern Water’s Testwood supply works. The outage has left nearly 60,000 homes in areas including Southampton, Romsey, Eastleigh, Totton, and parts of the New Forest without access to water since midweek.

Southern Water’s Response

Southern Water has apologised for the inconvenience and is working diligently to restore supplies, but the issue may persist until the weekend. Bottle stations have been set up at various locations, including Places Leisure Centre in Eastleigh, Sainsbury’s in Southampton, and Asda in Totton, to provide temporary relief.

Priority water deliveries are being made to vulnerable customers registered with Southern Water, and tankers have been dispatched to critical locations, including Southampton General Hospital and Princess Anne Hospital. Despite the disruption, hospitals continue to operate, asking patients to attend appointments as planned while accounting for potential delays due to tanker deliveries.

Restoration Timeline

Southern Water has expressed hope that supplies will gradually resume by Thursday, but full restoration might not be achieved until the weekend.

Water Bill Concerns

The crisis coincides with news that water bills in England and Wales are set to rise significantly. Southern Water is seeking an 84% increase, while Thames Water has proposed a 53% hike. The regulator Ofwat is expected to approve an average increase of over 20% by 2030, raising household bills from £448 to £542 annually.

The proposed hikes aim to fund £88 billion worth of investments for improving services and environmental standards, with changes taking effect from April next year.

Southern Water’s ongoing efforts to address the Hampshire water crisis come amid heightened scrutiny over their handling of resources and financial demands on consumers.