FURIOUS residents have been left in despair at wasted water leaking from broken pipes in Leigh and Thundersley as south Essex grapples with tinder-dry conditions.

The latest heatwave has already sparked calls to avoid lighting fires outside due to the tinder dry conditions, as well as calls from water companies to conserve water where possible. 

But Anna Firth, MP  for Southend West, has hit out at Essex and Suffolk Water for failing to address reports of leaking pipes. 

She says there has been an ongoing leak in Tattersall Gardens in Leigh for more than a week and questioned why action hasn’t been taken to resolve the issue and save water.

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Ms Firth said: “The leak is dreadful and an unfortunate waste of water during this drought and needs to be solved urgently.”

Essex and Suffolk Water said an engineer would be repairing the leak in Tattersall Gardens today.

But the firm has also come underfire from residents living on Daws Heath Road, Thundersley, which has been subject to a number of burst water mains over the past week.

Essex and Suffolk Water had already carried out a temporary repair to the main last week, but it has allegedly been leaking ever since.

Naomi Power, 62, said: “It has been leaking really bad.

“It is getting heavier, and no one has been near it for many days.

“It is disgusting when the public are being told to conserve water, it is a bit ironic.

“It is also very dangerous as people use Daws Health Road as a racing track at time, and some have just shot through the red light by it, which is an accident waiting to happen.

Essex and Suffolk Water said repairs on Dawes Heath Road would be completed by the end of the week. 

A spokesman added: “There is currently no impact to customer water supply however there is still a minor leak to this main and our teams will be on-site to carry out the full repair.

“Once the repair is complete, we will look to return the road back to normal by the end of the week.

“We apologise for any disruption caused and would like to thank our customers for their patience.”