United Utilities says that supplies in Morecambe will be fully restored today after many people were left without water for well over 24 hours.
The firm had shut off water in most of Morecambe on Monday afternoon to deal with widespread burst pipes and leaks on the network and at properties caused by a 'freeze-thaw' in temperatures.
The shutdown was expected to last 24 hours but some residents and businesses have had to wait longer than that to see their water return.
This was mainly because United Utilities restored the water gradually, saying this was "to ensure they protected the quality of water consumers receive and to prevent any further bursts on the network of pipes that bring the water to your home".
· Mathias Street Car Park, Mathias Street, Morecambe LA5 5JR
· Morecambe Festival Market car park, Marine Road, Morecambe LA4 4DW
The Mazuma Stadium, home of Morecambe FC, will not be a bottled water station on Wednesday.
On Tuesday evening it appeared the water was not being restored in Morecambe as quickly as first hoped.
Local councillors were told at a briefing on Tuesday night that around 4,000 of the 16,000 affected properties had their water back, although in some cases this was intermittent due to a reduction in water pressure and high demand. This was mainly in the Westgate and West End areas of the town.
Other areas, including Bare and Torrisholme, were being prioritised due the high number of elderly and vulnerable residents, and supply in these areas was expected to return overnight on Tuesday into Wednesday morning.
The White Lund area, where there has been an additional problem, would be the last to be restored, likely on Wednesday afternoon.
Many residents and business owners expressed frustration with the situation on social media.
But there was also some praise for United Utilities staff who have looked after the bottled water stations and made emergency deliveries.
Kevin Fowlie, United Utilities Incident Manager, said: “We made good progress on Tuesday, finding and fixing some large leaks in the area and increasing storage in the water network.
“It took some time to refill such a large area but I’m pleased to say that all customers will have water from their taps throughout the course of this morning. Pressure may fluctuate slightly throughout today but we expect everything to be back to normal later on.
“We will be writing to everyone affected with details of automatic compensation. Customers will not need to contact us to receive this.
“We’re very grateful to customers for their patience during this difficult period and we would still encourage people to report any leaks that they see out in the highway. Our teams are working around the clock finding and fixing leaks that have been caused by this period of extreme weather.”
To report a leak to United Utilities please visit https://www.unitedutilities.com/emergencies/report-a-problem/
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