ONGOING issues with Reading’s water network have been compounded by the problems in Pangbourne and having to deal with 10 burst water mains, the borough’s water company has said.
Since Saturday, the town has suffered from low water pressures meaning some homes have gone without water, while others have seen just a dribble get through their taps.
As a result, many homes have been unable to get hot water as boilers cannot work, showers cannot give enough water to run, and washing machines have not been fed enough of the wet stuff to wash clothes.
It means the Whitley whiff is returning, while sales of deodorant and eau du toilette will be soaring.
On Saturday, a problem at Thames Water’s treatment works in Pangbourne saw water pressure drop across the town. Some homes reported no water, while others couldn’t get enough to heat their homes.
Water stations were set up in The Meadway in Tilehurst and the Savacentre at Calcot to allow affected residents have access to bottled water.
The problem was thought to have been resolved by Sunday lunchtime, but an airlock in the system meant homes in the RG1, RG8, RG30 and RG31 area were once again seeing water dribble out of their taps, rather than gush.
On Monday, schools and offices were forced to close as the low water pressure meant it was unsafe to stay open.
Thames Water set up more stations offering bottles of water, this time in east Reading’s Tesco Extra store and again at The Meadway.
These will reopen tomorrow (Tuesday, January 23).
The company is asking people to only take what they need rather than taking more than they need to ensure there are enough supplies to go round.
Earlier today, Thames Water said supplies would get back to normal in the coming days.
Now, it has issued a fresh statement that reveals the extent of the problem the company is dealing with as it seeks to return to normality in Reading.
A Thames Water spokesperson told Reading Today: “We’re really sorry to customers in the Reading, Pangbourne and Tilehurst areas who continue to experience no water or low pressure.
“We’ve had ongoing issues with the water network in Reading. A technical issue at Pangbourne Water Treatment initially reduced the amount of water that we had stored in our reservoirs.
“Since that problem was resolved on Saturday, we have struggled to rebuild water pressure due to more than 10 burst mains caused by the recent cold weather. We have over 50 engineers in the area fixing leaks and removing airlocks from our network.
“All our customers should now have some water supply, but it may be at a lower pressure than normal. Customers with no water should contact us on 0800 316 9800.”
They continued: “Both the bottled water stations at Tesco Extra on Napier Road and Meadway Sports Centre on Conwy Road, Reading, will remain open until 9pm (on Monday, January 21) and re-open tomorrow at 9am.
“We will continue to deliver bottled water to customers on our Priority Service Register.
“We’d like to thank our customers for their continued patience while we fix this, they can find the latest updates by visiting our website.”
Customers can find out more by visiting: https://www.thameswater.co.uk/network-latest/pangbourne-wtw-outage-20-jan-2024
