Water gradually being restored in Morecambe after being turned off for 24 hours

Water was gradually being restored to properties in Morecambe after being turned off for 24 hours after "multiple bursts and leaks" on the network.

On Tuesday afternoon, water company United Utilities said they had continued to make good progress with repairs and some customers should start to see water return to their taps over the next few hours.

They added that they would be doing this gradually to ensure they protected the quality of water consumers receive and to prevent any further bursts on the network of pipes that bring the water to your home.

However by the evening, it appeared the water was not being restored in Morecambe as quickly as first hoped.

Local councillors were told at a briefing on Tuesday night that around 4,000 of the 16,000 affected properties had their water back, although in some cases this was intermittent due to a reduction in water pressure and high demand. This was mainly in the Westgate and West End areas of the town.

Other areas, including Bare and Torrisholme, were being prioritised due the high number of elderly and vulnerable residents, and supply in these areas was expected to return overnight on Tuesday into Wednesday morning.

The White Lund area, where there has been an additional problem, would be the last to be restored, likely on Wednesday afternoon.

Emergency bottled water stations in Morecambe were due to remain open until 8pm this evening.

Problems with the water supply in Lancaster, Morecambe, Heysham, Carnforth and surrounding areas began over the weekend and then on Monday many more homes and businesses suffered loss of water supply.

Some local firms had to close early on Monday due to water pressure issues, and many did not open on Tuesday either.

United Utilities turned off the water supply in most of Morecambe for 24 hours to try to deal with the problem in the town.

Properties in Morecambe, the West End, White Lund, Bare and Sandylands were affected.

United Utilities opened three bottled water stations in Morecambe today to support customers who are without supplies following 'freeze thaw' incidents.

There are bottled water stations located at:

·        Mathias Street Car Park, Mathias Street, Morecambe, LA5 5JR

·        Morecambe Festival Market car park, Marine Road, Morecambe, LA4 4DW

·        Morecambe FC, The Mazuma Stadium, Christie Way, Westgate, Morecambe, LA4 4TB

The Festival Market station replaced Salt Ayre Leisure Centre, which was open to distribute water bottles on Monday.

There were massive queues of traffic in Morecambe on Tuesday morning as people travelled to the bottle stations to pick up water.

United Utilities said that water was delivered overnight to affected customers on their Priority Services register, and the water company continued to work closely with the council and other stakeholders to support key sites and services.

Many services, in Morecambe in particular, were affected by the lack of water on Tuesday.

Bay Medical Group update

Bay Medical Group said they were only running clinics from two GP surgeries as they only had water at two sites - Morecambe Health Centre and Heysham Health Centre.

They asked people to check your mobile phone before attending any appointments as they were having to cancel some appointments and move patients to sites that had water.

They asked people to be patient on their main telephone line as the wait time was very high on Tuesday. If your call is not urgent, please phone later in the week. Bay Medical Group also apologised to any patients if they had to cancel their appointment today, as they needed to ensure patients' clinical safety was considered.

Shows cancelled

This afternoon's and evening's performance of the panto Cinderella at Morecambe Winter Gardens had to be cancelled.

A statement on the theatre's Facebook page said: "We had hoped that the water issue would have been resolved, but sadly the venue still does not have a water supply.

"Anyone who bought tickets via ticketsource will be immediately refunded but please we aware this may take a couple of days to show back in your bank.

"Anyone who bought tickets through the visitor centre will need to contact them directly."

Tonight's performance by popular folk group The Houghton Weavers at The Platform in Morecambe has also been called off.

"Unfortunately, due to the ongoing issues regarding water supply to the venue, which is impacting largely across the local area, we are having to cancel tonight's scheduled performance of The Houghton Weavers Christmas Show," said a statement.

"We'd like to express our sincere apologies for any inconvenience or disappointment caused.

"Those who have pre-booked tickets will be contacted by colleagues from Morecambe VIC once the building has been able to re-open, to arrange a full refund."

United Utilities update

In an update on Tuesday morning, Kevin Fowlie, United Utilities Incident Manager, said: “We have made good progress overnight finding leaks and increasing production at the local water treatment works to cope with the higher than normal demand. 

"We expect water supplies to return during the course of the day for affected customers and we are grateful for their patience. In the meantime we would encourage people to drop in on their neighbours to check on their wellbeing.” 

They said the problem was caused by the rise in temperatures after the recent bitterly cold spell, causing leaks and bursts in pipes both on the United Utilities network and at properties in the area.

Phil Sweeney, Central Operations Director at United Utilities, said: “We are really sorry that customers are going to be impacted in this way.

“We have been working hard over the past few days to repair leaks as quickly as possible and increase production at our water treatment works, but unfortunately we have reached the stage where very difficult decisions have to be made.

“Turning off supply to some parts of Morecambe allows us to safeguard other areas and key sites, including hospitals, and will give us time to refill our network storage.

“Vulnerable customers on our Priority Services register, as well as places such as care homes, will receive bottled water deliveries. All customers can collect free bottled water from our stations.

“We would like to reassure customers that we are doing all we can to get things back to normal as soon as possible, and we apologise again for the inconvenience.”

You can apply to go on the Priority Services Register and find more information at unitedutilities.com

Compensation claims

Morecambe Business Improvement District (BID), speaking on behalf of town businesses which were forced to close due to the lack of water, said on Tuesday: 

"This morning we sent an emailed letter to United Utilities, on behalf of Morecambe businesses, requesting advanced compensation considering the unique situation they have put us in given the time of year.

"We have approached it as almost a group action claim to signify the level of concern. We suspect everyone will be asked to submit individual claims but, hopefully, the ball is rolling."

United Utilities has said that compensation will be paid automatically to those affected.

Issues in Lancaster, Heysham and Carnforth

Issues with the water supply in Lancaster, Heysham, Carnforth and other areas of North Lancashire were being dealt with by United Utilities separately to the action they took in Morecambe. 

The water supply in those areas was starting to return on Tuesday, although Lancaster and Heysham remained a 'live incident' on the United Utilities website.

It says: "We’ve had reports that some customers in the Lancaster and Heysham area are experiencing low water pressure at the moment, this is as a result of the freeze and now thaw. Our team are carrying out some essential work on the water network in your area and believe this to be the cause.

"We're really sorry if this is causing any disruption, we're working hard to get these issues fixed and your water supply back to normal as quickly as we can."

Council support

Salt Ayre Leisure Centre has been available today for anyone who needs toilet facilities or to fill up their own water bottles due to the supply issues in Morecambe. 

Portable toilets are also available at the Festival Market and Morecambe Town Hall.

Lancaster City Council will be out and about door knocking tonight in some of the areas most affected.

If staff are not in your area and you need support or advice, their telephone lines (01524 582000), will be open until 9pm this evening and from 8am tomorrow (Wednesday).

Salt Ayre Leisure Centre will also be open overnight again to provide toilet facilities and for people to fill up their own water bottles.

School Closures

The following schools closed on Tuesday.

Lancaster Road Primary School and Nursery

Great Wood Primary School

Poulton le Sands Primary School

More information here. 

Advice on burst pipes

United Utilities has also issued advice about burst pipes.

"After the freezing weather conditions across the region, the temperature is on the up again.

"As the weather warms up any frozen pipes in your home will begin to thaw. When this happens, some of your pipes may leak or burst as a result of being frozen; it's worth taking a few steps now to be prepared.

"Burst and leaking pipes can cause damage to your home or business, so being prepared will help to reduce the impact of flooding from burst pipes, which can be extremely distressing as well as costly and time-consuming to repair.

"If you do have a burst pipe, don't panic, follow our advice below: 

• Find your stop tap, which is usually under the kitchen sink and turn it clockwise to turn off the water.   Watch our video below for advice on how to find your stop tap.
• Turn off your heating, open all your taps to drain the system quickly.
• Soak up any escaping water with towels.
• Check with your home insurance company to see if you’re covered for leaks and bursts or call a plumber.
• If you need to find a plumber in your area visit www.watersafe.org.uk
• If water has leaked near your electrics switch them off at the mains.

"Please think about your family, friends and vulnerable neighbours and share this information with them too."

More information here.