Many residents have contacted us about the drop in water pressure or, in many cases, no water at all.
Cllr Fred Cowell has written urgently to Thames Water for information. They have sent us the following update:
“Following the recent freeze and rapid thaw, there have been multiple bursts on our water networks and an increase in leaks in and on customers’ properties. Not all areas are affected equally, but significant numbers of customers are currently without water or have low pressure. This has caused a huge amount of call to come into our call centre and we are doing our best to answer these but are also talking to a significant number of customers via social media.
We are putting as much extra water as we can into our local networks and fixing leaks and bursts as quickly as possible. This afternoon we fixed a burst on an 18” water main in SW16 and which will help bring back pressures in the area although issues with airlocks are also affecting some of our water pumping stations, such as the booster station in Brixton. We are also working hard to prioritise supplies for vulnerable customers and to provide bottled water. There is currently a bottled water station in the carpark at Homebase at 100 Woodgate Drive, Streatham Vale, SW16 5YP. We are constantly resupplying this location and will be setting up other sites tomorrow morning and will provide updates via social media and our websites.
Throughout this time we have been working closely with our Resilience partners and are working in coordination with many other organisations to resolve things as quickly as we can. In the meantime, could you let me know if there are any particularly vulnerable customer you would like me to highlight to our teams so we can make sure they get special attention and are looked after.”
As well as asking for issues in West Norwood to be resolved as quickly as possible, we are asking that a bottled water distribution site be set up urgently in West Norwood as travelling to Streatham for drinking water is unacceptable, especially for vulnerable or older residents, those with children and caring responsibilities, and those without cars.
If you or a neighbour needs additional help, please contact us on ABirley@lambeth.gov.uk, FCowell@lambeth.gov.uk and MDeckersDowber@lambeth.gov.uk
Thurlow Park News 