Thousands in Hastings Face Christmas Water Outages After Mains Pipe Burst
A mains pipe burst was discovered in woodland north of Hastings, East Sussex on the morning of Tuesday, 23 December 2025, prompting urgent repairs to prevent widespread water outages during the Christmas period. Emergency bottled water deliveries began that evening, prioritizing vulnerable households.
Southern Water issued a warning that households could begin losing water supplies from Christmas Eve, with a worst-case scenario foreseeing supply loss as early as Wednesday, 24 December, depending on repair progress.
This incident follows previous disruptions in Hastings; notably, a May 2024 outage left residents without water for four days. Southern Water has identified several pipes in the area as aged assets prone to failure.
Labour MP Helena Dollimore criticized Southern Water's handling of the situation, urging for rapid opening of water stations, direct deliveries to priority service users, and additional supplies for pubs, restaurants, and hotels. She pledged to hold the company accountable.
Southern Water's managing director for water, Tim McMahon, described the precautionary measures being implemented to protect supply and appealed to customers to avoid exceeding normal water use or stockpiling water.
Emergency measures are ongoing to safeguard homes and businesses in Hastings while repairs continue.
