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Flood-hit homes to get water
30/07/2007 13:21 - (SA)
London - Water supply is expected to be restored to thousands of homes in flood-hit areas on Monday, although a full recovery remains days away.
Severn Trent Water said it was ready to start pumping water
to Gloucester, one of the worst affected counties, from around
noon.
It follows the restoration of the Mythe water treatment works in the market town of Tewkesbury, which was submerged by flooding.
But it could take several days for supplies to filter
through to 60 000 homes affected in Gloucester.
Even once supply is restored, homeowners are warned that the
water is not safe to drink, even if boiled. It can be used for
showering, bathing, flushing toilets and washing clothes.
Andy Smith, Severn Trent's director of water services, said:
"This a controlled process to refill more than a thousand miles
of empty water pipes and we must emphasise that it may take
several days for supplies to filter through to 60 000 homes in
Gloucester.
High demand expected
"We cannot give exact timescales for how long this process
will take, as it is heavily dependant on demand levels.
"We are expecting high demand because, understandably,
people who have been without water for more than a week will be
eager to make use of a reconnected mains supply."
Water will start to flow through taps in Quedgeley, Bishop's
Cleeve, Prestbury, Gloucester, Churchdown, Eastern Ave,
Longlevens, Treadworth, Abbeymead, Abbeydale, Barnwood, Tuffley,
Podsmead and Sandhurst on Monday.
Smith said the company aims to begin pumping water to
Cheltenham and the areas nearby from Tuesday.
Emergency drinking water will continue to be supplied from
water tanks and bottles.
Severn Trent said there are 1 000 tanks in affected areas
and five million litres of bottled water is being handed out per
day.
More than 130 000 homes have been relying on bottled water
and emergency water tanks on the streets after the floods forced
the closure of the Mythe plant.
Better weather predicted
Thousands of people breathed a sigh of relief on Sunday,
after heavy overnight rain failed to cause new flooding and
forecasters predicted better weather.
The Met Office said that only 10mm of rain fell in the
region, far less than expected, sparing towns already suffering
from the worst flooding in 60 years.
The wettest summer since records began has brought two bouts
of flooding to parts of England, killing at least nine people,
damaging houses and destroying crops.
A man's body was found in a flooded field on Saturday near
Tewkesbury.
Insurers estimate the flood damage at about £3bn (R43bn).
- Reuters
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