Village's second burst water main causes 'chaos'

The road through Butley is used by drivers heading for the coast

A burst water main in a village caused "traffic chaos" and affected homes and businesses, said a local councillor.

It was the second mains fracture in the village of Butley, near Woodbridge, Suffolk, in a week.

The first was repaired by Anglian Water, but the latest incident saw The Street closed whilst further repairs took place.

A post on the water company's website said an engineer had been on site and it was "working hard" to "resolve this issue" quickly. It has been contacted for comment.

James Mallinder represents the ward of Deben on East Suffolk Council

James Mallinder, a Conservative on East Suffolk Council whose Deben ward includes Butley, said: "It's caused a huge impact on traffic across the peninsula with diversions."

Mallinder said the burst water mains have meant homes and businesses in the area have had no water or have experienced low water pressure.

He said it was "the worst time" for the road closure as the area is popular with tourists and farmers were getting ready for harvest.

The councillor said he had written to Anglian Water asking if there were water infrastructure issues in the area.

He said he wanted to know if it was an "isolated incident" or whether there needed to be an "upgrade to the network".

Water tankers were seen at a water tower nearby

HMP Hollesley Bay, a Category D men's open prison and a young offender institution, was affected.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "We were notified of a fault affecting the strength of water supply to HMP Hollesley Bay.

"There are robust contingency plans in place to ensure prisoners still have access to water for essential needs," they added.