Water company Welsh Water has confirmed that the repair of the burst water main in Broughton has been completed but the disruption will continue over the next 48 hours
Thousands of Brits will be without water until Sunday after a major main burst this week, causing chaos for households.
While the issue has has now been fixed, disruptions are set to continue into the weekend in Flintshire, Wales. Some residents may not see their supply restored until Sunday, they have been warned, as outage frustration grows.
Welsh Water confirmed today that the repair was completed following a full emergency replacement. The incident, which began on August 14, was due to issues with a temporary fix in the Broughton area of the county. It comes after the NHS warns which mouth symptom could be a sign of a life-shortening disease.
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Communities across Deeside and along the Flintshire coast as far as Talacre were affected after the initial fault. Welsh Water reported “further problems” earlier this week, prompting urgent repair work.
The disruption sparked concern across the area, with some residents in Ffynnongroew worried about having little to no water for up to five days during another summer heatwave in Wales. In response, bottled water was distributed to Ffynnongroew Canolfan and Talacre Community Centre.
Although the damaged main has now been repaired, a Welsh Water spokesman said the process of refilling the water network, which stretches more than 500km, is being carefully managed to avoid secondary bursts. While most supplies are expected to return by Saturday, full restoration may not be complete until Sunday, August 17, reports Wales Online.
The company highlighted the complexity of the repair, with the main located five metres underground and surrounded by other utility infrastructure.
Welsh Water stated it continues to support vulnerable customers and is also supplying water to two hospitals and 20 care homes in the area. Be the first to read the biggest stories in Wales by signing up to our daily newsletter here.
Alternative water supplies can be found at the following locations:. Compensation arrangements have been confirmed, with Welsh Water issuing an open letter to customers available on their website. Late on Friday afternoon, Welsh Water issued a full statement: “We can confirm that the repair of the burst water main in Broughton has been completed this afternoon.
“The work of re-filling the water network has also started. This will take time as we need to avoid causing any secondary bursts on this extensive network which is over 500km. The disruption will continue over the next 48 hours as the network gradually refills. While we aim to restore the majority of supplies to customers tomorrow supplies will not be fully restored to everybody until Sunday.
“We are extremely sorry about this disruption as it is longer than we had hoped but the repair has proved challenging given that the water main is 5m deep and surrounded by underground utility cables. We are continuing to support our most vulnerable customer while also supporting two hospitals and 20 care homes.
“Customers whose water supplies are affected can collect an alternative water supply at:”. We ask that customers only take the bottled water that is needed. If customers have any elderly or vulnerable family members, friends or neighbours we urge you to check in with them to ensure they have bottled water.
“We have confirmed compensation arrangements and also issued an open letter to our customers here.”