Extreme weather causes Devon water mains bursts

Water supplies were restored in some affected areas over the weekend

Extreme weather has caused water to be cut off in parts of Devon.

Temperatures rising from -6C to 11C (21F to 52F) quickly put the network under pressure, causing mains bursts, South West Water (SWW) said.

It said parts of Seaton, Tiverton and Axminster experienced disruption, with bottled water delivered to homes.

It added that supplies had been restored in Axminster over the weekend with repairs still under way in Seaton and Tiverton on Monday morning.

'Eight burst pipes'

Paul Kaxe, from Axminster, said he and his wife got back home on Sunday afternoon after a weekend away to find they had just enough water "for a cup of tea".

He said: "It affected nearly everybody in Axminster.

"The local pub and other businesses had to shut and we were told there were at least eight pipes which had burst.

"We managed to get some water out of the tap into a jug for a cup of tea later on - that was all we could do."

SWW said on Monday morning that it knew "a very small number of customers in the Seaton area are experiencing disruption to their water supply".

It added: "We have worked hard all weekend and through the night to restore water to customers in Axminster and water is now restored, but customers may experience low pressure while water recharges into the system."

There are 13 flood warnings in place for south-west England, including in south Devon, throughout Monday.