THAMES Water says progress is being made in supplying water to cut-off customers in Swindon and North Wiltshire after a burst main today.

Levels at the Flaxlands Reservoir in Royal Wootton Bassett started to fall just before midnight, says Thames Water.

Teams were dispatched overnight to diagnose the problem and just before 7am engineers found the cause to be a 16-inch diameter burst pipe in woodland near Purton.

The farmer whose land the pipe runs through has given permission for work to begin with the only delay in investigating the cause being the arrival of specialist excavation equipment.

Thames Water has now re-routed water supplies to customers while work continues.

A spokesman said: “Our work to re-route water around our network means water pressures are now improving and supplies are gradually returning across the area.

"Some customers will have their water back sooner than others and in the meantime we’ll make sure bottled water is still available.

"We expect it to take until later this evening for everyone to have their supply back.

"We’re really sorry to all those who have been affected and are doing all we can to get things back to normal as quickly as possible.”

Thames Water is now delivering bottled water for affected customers to Lyneham Express on the A3102 opposite Teal Avenue; the Sun Inn, Lydiard Millicent; and Borough Fields Car Park, Royal Wootton Bassett.

Long queues have formed (see video below) with the Royal Wootton Bassett drop point running dry twice and having to be re-serviced by articulated lorries from Water Direct.

Local supermarkets have also seen their bottled water stock vanish as residents gather up what they can. 

The spokesman said: “We’re sorry to those customers who’ve had no water or low pressure this morning.

"The work we’re doing to re-route water around our network is having a positive effect so we’re gradually seeing pressures improving.

"It will however still be some time before things return to normal so we’ve made bottled water available at three collections points in the area and will keep these topped up for as long as needed.”

The company said an estimated 800 customers in the SN2 and SN4 postcode areas have reported a loss of water supply

St Bartholemew's Primary School and Royal Wootton Bassett Academy will remain closed today as a result of the ongoing water pressure problems. 

A Thames Water statement on its website confirmed that customers in the SN2, SN4, SN5, SN6, SN15, SN16, SN25, SN26 and GL7 postal code areas were affected by "no water and low pressure".

"We're sorry to customers who are experiencing no water or low pressure in the SN/GL7 postcode areas. This is due to a large burst main that has affected our Flaxlands Reservoir.

“Last night water levels in one of our reservoirs fell to such a level some customers woke up this morning with no water.

"Engineers worked through the night to figure out what was happening and just before 7am this morning found a large burst water pipe to be the cause of the problem.

"Our focus now is to repair that pipe and bring water back to the area as soon as possible, and alongside this we will be organising bottled water collection points for our affected customers.

"We are currently on site carrying out investigations and are working hard to resolve this. We're sorry for any inconvenience this may cause you.

"We’ve got tankers full of water in the area ready to go to schools and vulnerable customers (such as nursing homes) to make sure they stay in supply."

Mother-of-three Louise Ashford, of Woodshaw, said: "The water is trickling out of the taps so bath day will have to wait."