‘No water to drink, flush loo’: London residents suffer massive water shortage due to major pipe burst

Following the pipe burst, Thames Water deployed engineers who have been working to fix the issue

Thousands of South London residents have been suffering from water shortages after supply to several postcodes was impacted due to a major pipe burst.

London pipe burst: Thames Water employees carry out repair and maintenance. (Representational Image)(REUTERS)

The pipe burst affected six major postcodes, causing widespread disruption and frustration among London residents, Thames Water confirmed.

The areas most impacted include Crystal Palace, Sydenham, and surrounding neighbourhoods, with postcodes SE19, SE20, SE23, SE26, SE27, and SW16 all reporting a complete loss of water or severely reduced water pressure.

Efforts on to fix water supply

Following the pipe burst, Thames Water deployed engineers who have been working through the night to fix the issue.

However, the company is also dealing with a separate leak at the Crystal Palace pumping station, which is further complicating efforts to restore the water supply.

Meanwhile, Thames Water has implemented a temporary solution by redirecting water through alternative pipes to maintain supply to as many properties as possible.

London residents don't have water to drink, flush loo

As a result of the water pipe burst, South London residents are struggling with basic necessities like drinking water, flushing toilets, and washing.

"We had no water for washing and flushing or even drinking this morning. We’ve had periodic issues with supply in the winter – lots of burst pipes but this is the longest we’ve had no supply for a long time," Micon Metcalfe, a local who lives in West Norwood, told Metro UK.

Metcalfe further said the company has not provided any clear timeline for when the issue will be resolved.

Business owners are also feeling the effects of the outage. Gjergj Pjedij, the owner of Roasted Bean café in Crystal Palace, said that water pressure issues impacted business for the past few days.

"We've had problems with our water at the cafe in the past, a couple of Saturdays back now. While the pressure seems fine for us this morning, it really impacted business at the time," Metro UK quoted him as saying.