Thousands of households across south-east England are facing ongoing water supply disruption as soaring temperatures and increased demand place pressure on the region’s water network during the latest UK heatwave.
South East Water has urged customers to limit water use to essential activities such as drinking, cooking and washing after supply shortages affected large parts of Kent.
The disruption has left residents struggling with intermittent water access, low pressure and temporary outages, while some businesses have reportedly been forced to close amid the continuing problems.
The company confirmed that around 3,500 customers in Whitstable had been impacted, while approximately 165 households in Cranbrook were left without drinking water after local storage tanks reached critically low levels.
A further 10,500 customers across Coxheath, Loose, Headcorn, Herne Bay and Benenden have experienced low pressure or intermittent supplies as demand surged during the unusually warm weather.
South East Water incident response manager Matthew Dean said supply issues were expected to continue throughout the weekend as exceptionally high demand stretched the network beyond normal operating levels.
He explained that many customers were experiencing intermittent supply, with water pressure dropping most significantly during peak morning and evening periods when household usage is typically highest.
The company said crews were working to restore normal service levels and support vulnerable residents across affected areas.
Nearly 230,000 litres of water have reportedly been delivered directly to vulnerable customers, while bottled water has been supplied to care homes, GP surgeries, pharmacies and dental practices.
Officials also confirmed that almost 340,000 bottles of water had been distributed through emergency collection points across Kent, with additional water stations being considered.
The disruption comes as temperatures across Kent and the wider south-east remain significantly above seasonal averages for May.
Weather forecasts indicate temperatures could climb as high as 28C over the weekend, with many areas expected to remain between 24C and 26C on Saturday before easing slightly on Sunday.
South East Water apologised to affected customers and acknowledged the frustration caused by the shortages during hot weather conditions.
Dean said the company pumped around 619 million litres of water to customers on Thursday alone, approximately 100 million litres higher than the average daily demand for May.
The supply problems have renewed scrutiny over the resilience of water infrastructure in parts of England as periods of extreme heat and rising demand become increasingly common during warmer months.