Southern Water is gearing up for action if an expected sudden thaw reveals burst pipes across the region.
In 2018, customers experienced a similar disruption to their water supply following the so-called ‘Beast from the East’ weather event. Water expands and then freezes, which can cause pipes to split. When the thaw comes, the damage is revealed.
Plans are in place to deal with a possible increase in leaks and bursts, including:
- Early and regular communication with customers to keep them informed, and importantly explain what they can do to help
- Extra people on duty over this weekend
- Ongoing close monitoring of all reservoir levels
- A fleet of water tankers on stand-by to support supplies
- Emergency generators ready to be deployed
- Close working with key partners in our Local Resilience Forums.
Tim McMahon, Southern Water’s Water Director, said: “The process of ‘freeze/thaw’ proved to be a huge challenge for the entire country in 2018, and Southern Water is doing everything we can to ensure we are resilient and ready to respond if we face a similar challenge in the coming days.
“We cannot stop pipes bursting but we can make sure we have the teams, the technology and the processes to react quickly. By being ready, we can make sure any disruption to our customers and communities is kept to a minimum.”
Most of the water lost from the network during ‘freeze/thaw’ events typically comes from the pipes in customers’ own properties – particularly business premises which may be unattended at weekends or overnight – causing significant damage and distress. This is alongside urgent repairs required to larger network pipes.
Tim added: “Everyone needs to be prepared – householders should know where their stop cock is to minimise water damage, know who to call in an emergency and remember to turn off water if you’re going away. We’d encourage business owners to switch off their supply on Friday night, ahead of the weekend.
“I am confident that Southern Water is now in the best place it has been to respond to any problems in our own network. Thousands of acoustic sensors across our network of 15,000km of water pipes can help us detect and pinpoint leaks and bursts quickly, and a new incident management system in our cutting-edge control room has improved our ability to respond quickly and predict where problems could come. We also have a real time weather feed.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
With a thaw predicted in the next few days, the most important thing is to ensure people know is where their stop cock is located, should they need to turn the water off in the event of a burst. Where is my stop tap? (southernwater.co.uk)
Some families taking longer Christmas breaks are already going away on holidays and it’s a good idea to turn your water off – no one wants to return to a flooded home.
We’re also urging business owners to turn of the water if their premises will be unoccupied over the weekend. For more tips on how to prepare for cold weather, visit: Retailer useful information (southernwater.co.uk)
There’s supporting information available at: Prepare your home for winter (southernwater.co.uk) and How to stop your pipes freezing and bursting in cold winter weather (southernwater.co.uk). We also post regular updates on our social channels – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram.