Thames Water confirmed on Friday, 15 August 2026, that water supply had been restored to households across east London and Essex, six days after a series of burst pipes cut off service to thousands of homes. The company said all damaged pipes had now been repaired, though it warned that some customers could still experience low water pressure into Friday evening.
The disruption began early on Sunday when two water mains burst in the South Woodford area, including breaks on Chigwell Road and Daisy Road, according to Redbridge Council. The bursts went on to affect roughly 10,000 homes across Chigwell, Romford, Leytonstone, Redbridge, South Woodford, Buckhurst Hill, Loughton and parts of Essex.
How many homes were affected?
At the height of the crisis, more than 15,000 homes across Woodford, South Woodford, Clayhall, Hainault and surrounding areas had no water, intermittent supply or low pressure, according to Redbridge Council. The council added that as of Tuesday afternoon, 3,600 homes were still without water, and by 13 August the postcodes IG5, IG6, IG7, IG8, IG10 and RM4 remained affected.
What caused the delay in repairs?
Thames Water said the repair work proved more complicated than initially anticipated, requiring excavation, replacement pipework, network reconfiguration and the recovery of local storage and pressure, according to Redbridge Council. By 12 August, the outage had entered its fifth day after the company said it had fixed three burst pipes, and further repairs on High Road, Daisy Road and Chigwell Road were later confirmed as complete, allowing water to be reintroduced to the network, according to the Evening Standard. Thames Water separately said the vast majority of customers in the Chigwell area were back in supply following successful mains repairs, according to its own network update.
The company has faced criticism over how it communicated with affected residents and over problems with the distribution of bottled water, and it has issued an apology. A Thames Water spokesperson said:
We know how difficult and frustrating this has been for affected customers and we'd like to thank them for their patience while our teams worked to restore supplies.
Once the incident is fully resolved, we will carry out a detailed review to understand what happened, identify any improvements needed and use what we learn to help strengthen the network and reduce the risk of similar disruption in the future.
Engineers are remaining on site to clear trapped air from the network, monitor supplies and take further action if it proves necessary, the spokesperson added.
How has the council responded?
Redbridge councillor Jo Blackman, cabinet member for environment and neighbourhoods, said that 600 homes were still without water on Friday morning, six days after the pipes first burst. She said Thames Water had not opened as many bottled water distribution sites as she had hoped, and that the sites that were open were experiencing serious congestion.
The Labour councillor said going without water during the heatwave had been particularly hard for residents, and confirmed the council had opened its leisure centres to the public so they could use the shower facilities. Thames Water said it had previously posted regular updates on its website covering repair progress, the restoration of supplies and the opening of bottled water stations, and that customers on its Priority Services Register had received bottled water deliveries where needed.
Is this part of a wider pattern?
The outage adds to a run of water supply failures affecting parts of southern England this year. Earlier in 2026, nearly 6,000 homes in Kent were affected by a burst water main from South East Water, forcing some schools and businesses to close, while a separate incident later left thousands of homes in Tonbridge without water or with low pressure after another burst pipe. Kent also experienced widespread water disruption during a heatwave, prompting calls for essential use only.
What happens next?
Thames Water said engineers would remain on site to clear residual trapped air from the pipe network, continue monitoring supplies and take further action if any problems resurface. Redbridge Council said it would continue its support measures for residents while the company worked toward full restoration. Once the incident is formally closed, Thames Water has committed to a detailed review aimed at identifying what went wrong and strengthening the network to reduce the risk of similar disruption occurring again.
Key Facts
- Water supply was restored on Friday, 15 August 2026, six days after pipes burst.
- About 10,000 homes across east London and Essex were initially affected; peak impact reached more than 15,000 homes.
- The bursts occurred on Chigwell Road and Daisy Road in South Woodford early on Sunday.
- 3,600 homes remained without water as of Tuesday afternoon, according to Redbridge Council.
- Postcodes IG5, IG6, IG7, IG8, IG10 and RM4 were still affected as of 13 August.
