HOMEOWNERS were temporarily left without access to water earlier today after a water pipe burst and destructively ripped through a busy road.

Affinity Water engineers were called to Manningtree this morning after receiving calls from several residents who reporting having little or no water supply.

It was soon established that more than 35 streets within the CO11 postcode area were experiencing similar issues and an investigation to find the cause was launched.

Before long workers discovered a waterpipe located on Station Road had burst and torn through the ground, resulting in flooding either side of the railway bridge.

Braintree and Witham Times:

As a result, the road was subsequently closed and within a few hours residents reported seeing their water supply gradually return.

A spokesman from Affinity Water said: “We’re really sorry for the problems with your water today.

“We have restored our customers supplies, and you should start to see your pressure go back to normal.

“Our repair team will remain on site, until the burst water main has been fixed. To safely carry out these repairs, a road closure is necessary. 

“If your water is discoloured or cloudy, don’t worry this is normal. We know it doesn’t look nice, but it’s not harmful.”

Currently, it remains unknown when Station Road will be fully reopened, but resident Jim Ensom, believes it is likely to stay closed until Monday morning.

Mr Ensom ventured down to where the water pipe had burst shortly after realising what had happened and spoke with engineers.

He said: “It was a blowout in Station Road and this is obviously not what we needed, with Covid and the snow we had this morning.

“But Affinity Water were on the scene quickly and managed to do a workaround to restore the mains water and saved the day.

“Now they have got to do the repair, which inevitably mean the main road through Manningtree will be shut for a day or so.”