DROUGHT OF ORDER
We can’t flush our loo or brush our teeth after bungling water company supply dried up – but our neighbours have plenty
RESIDENTS living on one side of a road can't flush their loo or brush their teeth after their water supply dried up.
About 70 people living on the same side of a Northend village road are relying on a water tanker and hundreds of bottles of free water by volunteers.
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For those who live on the opposite side of the road, water has been free-flowing from their household taps.
The water-deprived households have been without water due to a long term reservoir issue caused by underground water levels dropping in the south Oxfordshire village.
Locals living in the region - which straddles the Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire county line - claimed that the problem began back in 2018 and they are furious that no solution has been put in place, particularly as the drought is setting in.
On the other side of the village, which is near Henley-on-Thames, the grass is much greener.
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Their water supplies remain unaffected by the drought as their water is supplied by a different pipe, while the other half are having to go without showers.
Caroline Evans, one of the locals struggling without water, said: "I think Thames Water has been topping up the underground supply with water tankers containing thousands of gallons.
"It's all a bit dire. It all started when it was very hot a few weeks ago and the water company wasn't doing much. In reality these problems have been happening since 2018.
"The water company should have been onto it much earlier. I had to ask for the water.
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"In the first heatwave, when it was about 40 degrees, the water supply was really bad and we've had to chivvy and push to get help. Communicating with them is really hard."
The water tankers reportedly replenished water supply in the underground reservoir on Monday evening and by the next afternoon the water pressure was gone again.
Mrs Evans, a retired former Buckinghamshire County Council worker said there were two big water leaks in the villages of Southend and Bix that haven't been fixed.
Mrs Evans continued: "We can't flush the toilets but we've learned now that we can use the bottled water to do that. We are also using it to brush our teeth and boil our vegetables.
"The longest we went without water was two to three weeks, that was 2018.
"Thames Water haven't spent enough money to put this issue right.
"They also don't have the staff, one of the workers here today is actually retired. It was on the news this morning that the Chief Executive was getting a bonus - but the workers have told me they are scheduled a pay CUT. It is ludicrous."
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'WORST I'VE KNOWN IT'
Peter Langford, a local farmer, aged 69 years, said: "I don't think we are prepared for drought. The village pond is empty.
"My fields are like prairies. This is worse than the 1974 drought. This is a long term issue and it has never been resolved."
Mr Langford's water supply ceased at about 7pm three days ago.
The beef cattle farmer added: "We are totally reliant on tankered water and they've issued us with bottled water supply.
"It has literally got to the point where I was considering using the plastic bottled water to fill up my animals' troughs. Any farm must be at risk at the moment.
"This is the worst I've ever known it and I've lived here all my life."
Thames Water workers have told people in the village that they would have emptied their tankers by 1pm but another was then called to the scene.
A spokesman for Thames Water said: "We are sorry for customers in the area who are experiencing lower pressure than normal due to technical issues without Stokenchurch water. We have a team on site working hard to resolve this as soon as possible.
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"We are using tankers to help boost supplies to customers in Northend to keep up water pressure for these customers so they do not see supply issues happening. We are also delivering water bottles."
The water company confirmed that 68 residents in the village were without water for a period of time.
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