A water company says the number of leak reports shot up from 20 a day to more than 300 over the weekend as Storm Isha battered the country.

Southern Water has apologised after homeowners in both Halfway and Minster on Sheppey were left without water for the past four days, but says it has been inundated with calls from customers logging problems.

Some customers have reported low pressure or no water at all since Sunday (January 21).

Southern Water confirmed it was aware of a burst pipe in the area at around midday.

There had been reports that water was “pumping all over the road” near the Oasis Academy campus in Minster.

A spokesman from the utility company said: “Our teams are set to repair the burst today, we’re sorry this is taking longer than usual.

“We’ve seen a surge in demand for water across the region – and it looks like the recent changes in weather have caused network issues resulting in a large number of bursts reported.

“Normally we get 20 leak reports a day from customers and over the weekend this rose to more than 300.

“We’re prioritising the biggest bursts to ensure we can minimise the customer impact.”

Kent is still feeling the after-effects of Storm Isha, which hit on Sunday night and caused disruption across the country.

Residents in Coxheath and Ulcombe near Maidstone, as well as Shadoxhurst and Kingsnorth near Ashford, are also without water after the storm.

Southern Water is asking customers to report any bursts they see by calling 0330 303 0368.