Engineers find leak which caused water outage

BBC A man in orange hi-vis is working in a square hole dug into the road. The hole is cordoned off by green fencing. BBC
Southern Water say they have located the leak which caused Christmas disruption

A leak which left dozens of properties in Strood without water over Christmas has now been located.

Southern Water said they were working to repair the pipe but 19 properties will still be without water on Saturday morning.

Electric cables close to the pipe has made the repair complex for engineers, the company said but they confirmed they start excavating around the damaged pipe after speaking to UK Power Networks (UKPN).

The disruption began on Monday when up to 1,000 properties experienced water supply issues, and 45 properties were affected on Christmas Day.

While repairs are taking place, an overland pipe will be installed to serve 12 properties, while the other seven affected properties will be served by a water tank from Saturday evening.

Southern Water said: "We have arranged further bottled water deliveries for our domestic customers still without water."

On Christmas Day and Boxing Day, residents from 29 homes and 17 commercial properties were given access to Strood Leisure Centre for showers.

The company said that regular updates were available on its website.

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