Burst pipe floods Crawley roads and leaves 9,000 homes without water

Thousands of homes in parts of Crawley lost their water supply or reported heavy pressure loss after a major water main burst, while flooding forced the closure of several roads around one of the town's busiest junctions. Sussex Police described the leak as "significant" and said roads in the vicinity of the Southgate Roundabout were closed from Sunday morning.

The disruption affected a wide swathe of the town. Southern Water said around 9,000 customers were impacted by the incident and that it was establishing bottled water stations to help residents who were unable to tap drinking water or were left without water for washing and cooking.

Affected streets and neighbourhoods include Woolborough Road, Holmcroft, Southgate, Tilgate and Furnace Green. Customers in those areas were reported to be experiencing either a complete loss of supply or a significant reduction in pressure, according to the water company, which issued a dedicated loss-of-supply notice for the town.

Road closures followed quickly as escaping water poured across the carriageway and into an underpass. Southgate Avenue, Crawley Avenue and part of the A23 — the trunk road linking the south coast to London — were all closed while crews attended the scene, according to Southern Water. The closures are expected to place significant pressure on surrounding routes during a busy Sunday, given the volume of traffic that normally uses the A23 through Crawley.

A company spokesperson said repair teams had been on site since the early hours and were working to restore service as quickly as safety allowed. The company stressed that its priority remained getting water back to customers, adding that engineers were continuing to work "as quickly and safely as possible" to repair the burst and bring supplies back to normal.

Sussex Police also asked the public to steer clear of the area while emergency services worked to manage the situation safely. Residents were warned that standing water and the need for heavy plant equipment made the surrounding streets hazardous.

Delivery driver Martin Lawrence was among the first to encounter the flooding, passing through the area at about 05:00 BST while on his rounds. He described water sweeping across the road from one side of the roundabout to the other and funnelling down into the underpass, saying he had never seen so much water in his life.

The timing of the burst means it happened during the small hours, when many residents were likely asleep, which means many households will have discovered the problem only when taps began to run dry or flow weakly. Early-morning road closures and the arrival of repair crews would also have met very little traffic at first, but the scene changed rapidly as residents and passing motorists converged on the junction.

The Southgate Roundabout is one of the principal entry points to central Crawley, and the streets named as affected are among the town's most densely populated. That combination of a large number of homes losing supply and a key transport artery being shut is likely to raise pressure on the company to publish a clear restoration timetable, something that had not been confirmed at the time of publication.

The incident is the latest in a run of water-main problems affecting the Crawley area. It comes after earlier disruption in the region that saw water supplies interrupted at nearby Gatwick Airport, a major transport hub on the town's doorstep, including an outage that forced the airport to suspend operations before water was eventually restored. Those episodes drew criticism and attention over the resilience of the local network and the speed with which affected users were given information.

Southern Water is the incumbent supplier for the Crawley area and is responsible for maintaining the local mains network, including the pipe that failed on Sunday. Utility companies are generally required to restore supplies and to compensate customers who are left without water for extended periods, a process that typically begins once a claim is submitted and the interruption is verified.

Emergency stocks, bottled water stations and updates on repair progress are the immediate priorities for the roughly 9,000 households affected. Residents in the named streets who need drinking water are being directed to the company's loss-of-supply page, and those travelling through Crawley are advised to expect delays on the A23 and the roads immediately around Southgate Roundabout.

No timescale for full restoration had been given. Southern Water said engineers would remain on site until the pipe was repaired and pressure returned to normal across the affected neighbourhoods, with updates expected as the work progresses. Sussex Police said emergency services would continue to manage the scene and asked members of the public to avoid the area in the meantime.

Further updates on the Crawley water outage, including confirmation of when supplies will be fully restored, are expected from Southern Water and local emergency services through the day.