Telford water supply hit by huge demand
Water supplies in Telford ran dry after exceptionally high demand led to levels at a town reservoir to drop dramatically, it was revealed today.
Severn Trent today issued hundreds of letters of apology to residents after a they were left without water or with supplies that turned brown.
The company today urged residents to be careful about the amount of water being used overnight as high demand is causing problems later in the day.
Water levels at the Old Park Reservoir dropped, causing the problem that started last week and continued into the weekend as supplies remained cloudy.
The water firm blamed the sudden drop on extra sprinklers being used in gardens at night across Telford.
It said the problems with discoloured water were caused when extra water was pumped into the tank, stirring up sediment.
The company added more than 300 million extra litres of water into its system across the region this weekend in an effort to keep up supplies.
It said there was no prospect of drought but that there were problems moving water to areas of high demand. It urged people to conserve supplies.
Severn Trent spokeswoman Sarah-Jayne O'Kane said: "The issue in Telford was caused just by high demand. People were using the water faster than we could pump it in."
She said workers were immediately sent to the reservoir to repair the damage, and begin returning it to its proper level. Levels will continue to be monitored as the heatwave continues.
Homes across Dawley, Ketley, Ketley Bank, Lawley, Malinslee, Old Park and The Rock suffered from brown water and some lost supplies completely.
In the letter, Severn Trent operations manager Steve Witter said: said: "Whilst the water may not look appealing, this does not pose a risk to health."
The company has set up a helpline, on 0800 7834444.
