6,500 properties are still without water
Kate Gale, deputy scheme manager at Sherborne Close in Hawkenbury: “I think the impact of this is more upsetting to them than it ever was with Covid as it is impacting their homes and their day-to-day lives.”(Image: Mary Harris)
There’s plenty of water in Tunbridge Wells where it’s rained heavily all day today (January 15) – it’s everywhere apart from coming out of the taps to 6,500 properties still without water. Yesterday evening South East Water (SEW) announced its recovery plan.
It may be good news in the long term but, for now, that means the taps will stay dry. That’s because the “local booster pumps” were switched off for 36 hours, as they can’t work if there’s not enough water in the storage tanks to actually pump.
Tunbridge Wells hasn’t been promised water tomorrow morning (January 16), but the water company said its “aim” was that we’ll wake up to a “consistent water supply”. There’s gallows humour here about having baths in the large puddles created by SEW’s burst water mains but, in Tunbridge Wells, people have reached boiling point – just like the water they had to heat up as a ‘precaution’ at the beginning of this latest water crisis.
That was the nightmare before Christmas, when 24,000 customers were left without drinkable water for almost two weeks. Today, one man spoke to KentLive through his open kitchen window, saying: “I can’t talk to you, I’ve got two kids, I’ll get even more angry, sorry, but what’s the point?”
A little further up the road, One Stop and Fuller’s Butchers were both shut, with signs saying it was down to the water issues. Martin and Hilary Page, who live in Forest Road in Hawkenbury, had a flood from the bathroom upstairs, as water came on early one morning, and they’d mistakenly left the plug in the basin and thought the tap was turned off: easy to do, when you’re frequently testing whether or not you have water.
Their kitchen and living room had water an inch deep, the hob was full of water, and their floors are still drying out. They are taking it up with the insurance company.
As we reported yesterday, Tunbridge Wells MP Mike Martin wrote to NatWest calling for an urgent meeting to find out how the situation will be resolved. SEW is privately owned by HDF Holdings, which is owned by “major shareholder” NatWest’s pension fund, said Mr Martin, along with a Canadian pension fund and an Australian infrastructure investor, according to pensions magazine, PensionsAge.
Hilary said: “I wonder how this is going to affect NatWest’s reputation? Because of the all the repairs that need to be done and the upgrades, the customers are going to have to pay.”
She said “all those people getting dividends and getting thousands of pounds”, along with large salaries at SEW, yet it would be customers who would see their bills rise to cover the costs. “Why should we have to pay it?
“In November 2020, SEW were pulled up about their failing infrastructure. Two years and two months later and nothing; look where we are now,” she said.
Kate Gale is deputy scheme manager at Sherborne Close, where there are 94 flats, with about 120 older people living independently, with 12 of them aged over 90. Kate said during the pandemic residents, although restricted, were in their homes and safe.
Meanwhile, the water crisis has gone right to the heart of their daily lives, their routines, such as washing, cooking, keeping their clothes clean. Their Christmas lunch at the Camden Arms had to be cancelled on the day because of the water situation, leaving around 30 people very disappointed, as it was “their main social event of the year”.
Kate told us: “We’ve had issues from the start, at the beginning of December. We had five days when we didn’t have anything, which was great fun, and there’s been something every day.
“I think we have had two days in a row – when we had water – once,” said Kate. The water usually comes on in the morning, then goes after lunch and “that’s it” for the rest of the day, she said.
In December, residents not registered as priority for water supplies were encouraged by the team at Sherborne Close to apply. But deliveries have come at “random times” including at 12.45am, said Kate.
The two litre bottles can be heavy and awkward for many people, and the tops can be hard to get off, she added. Talking of further issues facing them, she said: “They can’t shower. Some of them have carers who can’t do their job, they haven’t got running water to do it.
“I think it’s getting quite a lot of them down. We had the 10-day boil notice before Christmas, then we were told we could all go back to using the water from the tap.
“Our workload increases, as we have to keep them safe. One of my concerns is the personal cleanliness, and not being able to flush the toilet. Some people are vulnerable,” said Kate.
“This is a bigger impact on them than Covid was, because at least with Covid they were in their own homes, warm and safe, and this is now in their homes and I don’t think their homes feel safe to them. No hot water, heating struggles, washing machine down as the pressure is out, we’re being careful because of the risk of machines burning out when low on water.
“The impact of this is more upsetting to them than it ever was with Covid as it is impacting their homes and their day-to-day lives.” Sarah Bird, who lives in Forest Road, said: “It’s horrendous. My daughter is disabled and she doesn’t go to school.
“One of her problems is with her bladder. This means I can’t wash her bedding. So every night I have to find a launderette, so that’s problematic. That costs around £15 a day, and the petrol to get there and back.”
“It’s been intermittent for us since before Christmas. The worst bits? Not being able to flush the toilet and washing up.
“It takes around 10 litres of water to fill the cistern, and for washing up, I’d say minimum of six litres. We have started using paper plates and cups, which is not great for the environment but at least they get recycled,” said Sarah.
She has shelled out on a water container with a tap, so at least washing things including hands is easier than trying to hold and tip a water bottle under one arm, and a camp shower, which has a little pump you put in a bucket of water, and a shower head you can stick to a wall. It’s a very rapid shower, but better than going without, she said.
That cost around £25, and added to all the other expense, it runs into “hundreds of pounds through the Christmas period and now this” said Sarah.
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