PHOTOS: Thousands Without Water In West Sussex

Residents in. parts of West Sussex spent Sunday (May 14) without water after the Hardham Water Supply Works was closed down due to a fault.

At around 9pm on Saturday night (May 13) Southern Water released a statement informing residents who receive their water supply from the Upper Nash and Itchenfield reservoirs, that they would not be receiving water or that their water pressure would be low.

They later apologised to customers in Horsham, Billinghurst, Broadbridge Heath, Pulborough, Codmore Hill, West Chiltington, Wisborough Gree, Rudgwick, Loxwood, Barns Green, Slinfold who had no water supply, informing them that the bottled water station at Lidl in Billingshurst would be open until midnight.

At 9.45am on Sunday morning they said:

"We're very sorry to our customers who are without water - we're doing everything we can to restore supply as soon as possible. The incident was caused by unusually low levels of chlorine being detected at our Hardham water supply works on Saturday. Although this did not impact customers, we had to shut down the site and as a consequence, are currently unable to supply water to approximately 20,000 customers in West Sussex. 

"We anticipate that this number will grow during the morning, and could reach 40,000 at around lunchtime.  We're doing everything we can to fix this and return the plant to service. We hope supplies will begin to return early this evening, and be back to normal within the next 24 to 36 hours.

"We've already started deliveries to our most vulnerable customers on our priority services register, and have a fleet of 19 tankers already supporting hospitals and supply where most needed. Bottled water stations will be open today."

In an update at 9pm on Sunday night, the water company said they were confident that supplies would return overnight, except for customers in Turners Hill (postcode areas RH10 1, RH10 3, RH10 4, RH10 6, RH10 7, RH10 8, RH10 9, RH11 7) who may not have water until mid morning. 

"We're looking to minimise the impact in the Turners Hill area by injecting water straight into the network. We're also working with local partners to identify options for more local water delivery and bottled water stations - please see our website for further information tomorrow. 

"We know that GCSE’s start in the morning and we have a plan to ensure that the secondary school in the area has a direct water supply and experiences no disruption." 

Bottled water stations were set up in Pulborough, Billingshurst and Horsham.

Meanwhile, a Loxwood pub, the Onslow Arms, ordered in portable toilets and handwashing facilities for its customers and the wider community.

"We wanted to do our part to help the community during this challenging time," said Rob Bar, the owner of Onslow Arms. "As a local business, we understand how important it is to support our neighbours and customers in any way we can."

Despite the water supply issues, Onslow Arms has been able to remain open thanks to their continued water flow and storage. 

The pub has become a hub for the community, providing a place to socialize and access essential facilities.

"We're proud to be a part of this community, and we're committed to helping out however we can," added Bar.

"We hope that these portable toilets and handwashing facilities will make a difference for everyone affected by the water shortages.

"We have also offered our car park to Southern Water as a bottle water distribution point, but still awaiting a response from Southern Water."