Water supply chaos leaves two Willenhall schools closed and taps dry at homes
Two schools were forced to close while repairs were made to a burst water main while other homes were left without a water supply on one of the hottest days of the year.
Temperatures reached hit up to 28C (82F) as the Midlands continued to bask in a heatwave.
On Friday a burst water main on Stroud Avenue forced the closure of Willenhall E-ACT Academy, based in Furzebank Way, Willenhall.
It was then closed today due to another burst water main along Longwood Rise.
Nearby Lodge Farm Primary School, also in Furzebank Way, was also shut today due to a lack of water.
Year 11 students sitting GCSEs were able to continue after academy officials provided emergency supplies.
The academy told parents to not send children in on Friday and sent those who had arrived at school home while repairs were carried out.
Interim headteacher Kirstie Jones told parents: “I apologise for the inconvenience that this has caused and can assure you that this is not a decision that has been taken lightly.”
A Severn Trent spokesperson said: “On Friday, we were made aware of a burst pipe on Stroud Avenue in Willenhall that was affecting the water supply for some of our customers.
"Our teams repaired the pipe and the water was back on later that day.
“We worked on another burst pipe on Longwood Rise, also in Willenhall, which caused some customers to be without water again.
"We’re really sorry for the inconvenience caused, but both pipes are repaired and all customers now have their water back on.”
Humayon Pramanik, Trust-wide communications manager for the school, said: “The academy along with local residents have been advised by Severn Trent Water that this local issue involving a burst water main will be resolved by Monday afternoon, and we expect Willenhall Academy to be open as usual tomorrow.
“Public examinations at the academy are going ahead as planned today with working toilet facilities available to those students on site.”
Some homes in parts of Kidderminster and Stourport also experienced problems as temperatures soared.
People living in the DY12 and DY13 areas had disruption to their supplies for up to three hours on Sunday.
Severn Trent released an update to residents on Twitter, saying: “The technical fault has been resolved and we’re now working hard to get everything back to normal.”
“We know how difficult it is to have no water, especially in this weather, and we’re sorry for the experiencing poor pressure at the moment and we’d like to reassure them we’re doing everything we can to get the water supplies back to normal.”
