This weekend’s flooding was the second in six years Leabrook Road in Wednesbury The surrounding streets were flooded due to the burst water main.

Thousands of homes were left without water overnight, and weak, discolored water returned this morning. Electricity was cut off for more than 700 houses for hours due to the flood.

Water and shelter were offered at Wednesbury Sons of Rest on Saturday night. The Leabrook Road church, which had to close for years after floods, was damaged again.

Leabrook Road resident Matthew Fisher said: “It was awful. And this isn’t the first time the water main has burst in 2018. “We’ve had our power cut off and are still using bottled water.

“The water came right to our door, we have a flooded shed out back. I feel bad for the church, it took them years to reopen after the last flood.”

From 22.30 on Saturday night, water tankers were at the scene where citizens were supposed to collect water to be provided in water bags, boiled before drinking or used for cooking.

Roads began to slowly reopen this afternoon with the reopening of the Black Country Route.

South Staffordshire Water The repair team released an update this afternoon confirming that a second water main had burst in Tipton.

The company said: “Repair of a main line burst at Leabrook Road, Wednesbury, is ongoing. A separate main line burst at Dick Sheppard Avenue, Tipton and we are supporting customers there. We are also using the rest of our network to support the area when the burst occurs. affected area, which could have knock-on effects.

“Dick Sheppard Avenue. We are still working hard to fix this and while it is a priority, it is also important to clarify that this is a much smaller issue than the main explosion on Leabrook Road and needs to be resolved as soon as possible.”

Wednesbury resident Alexia Patropoulos demanded a response from the water company on her old Twitter account . I thought it was easier to fix this, so why hasn’t it been done yet?”

West Midlands Fire Brigade issued an update saying: “WMFS crews were in the flooded area of ​​Leabrook Road until the early hours of this morning. Fire personnel also assisted with the distribution of water from the Gallagher Retail Park.

“The scene was handed over to South Staffs Water (SSW) at 2am and the water level had dropped significantly. SSW worked through the night to repair the burst water main. It has now been confirmed that water has been restored to all customers.

“Customers may notice discoloration and should run faucets until the water runs clear. Discolored water should not be drunk or used for cooking.”

Antonia Bance, MP for Tipton and Wednesbury, thanked all the volunteers who helped residents and promised to hold South Staffordshire Water to account.

He said: “I would like to thank all the volunteers, councillors, my staff and all the frontline workers who responded, including the police, firefighters and engineers, for stepping up and going above and beyond where South Staffs Water let us down.

“We are proud to be Sandwell, the community response has been incredible. We are told South Staff Water is delivering water directly to all affected vulnerable residents. We will be seeking further information.”

He added: “I will make sure the questions are asked and I will be meeting with ministers tomorrow to make sure we hold South Staffs Water accountable for their responses.”