Southern Water says it will fork out around £2m in compensation to Islanders left without water after a main burst.

Some homes and businesses on Sheppey remain cut off today as the supply chaos – declared a major incident by Swale council – continues.

Taps ran dry on Tuesday, leaving an estimated 30,000 people sweltering in a heatwave.

Southern Water apologised after admitting it was taking longer than expected to restore supplies in what has been one of the hottest weeks on record but said repairs have now been completed, with supplies expected to return shortly.

Buildings including schools, libraries, children’s centres, and the Sheerness Gateway had been closed because of the water shortage. Supermarkets like Tesco were forced to shut up shop and even the Island's swimming pool in Sheerness had to close as there was no water for toilets.

Today it was announced that those affected will automatically receive at least £30 in compensation which could cost the company at least £2m.

The privately-owned utilities firm has had a customer charter since October 2020 which sets out minimum standards of service residents can expect and compensation payments as agreed by the regulator Ofwat.

In the case of a burst pipe, the company aims to restore supplies within 12 hours. If it fails, customers will automatically have £30 paid into their account and another £30 for each additional 12 hours of interruption.

Some Islanders were still without water this afternoon, 36 hours after the supply stopped.

A bottle bank was opened in a car park behind an amusement arcade in Leysdown to hand out free water but soon cars were backing up along the Promenade as residents hunting for water joined throngs of mystified holidaymakers who had also been left without water in the Island's many caravan parks.

The water shortage was caused by at least two large leaks on the main pipe taking water onto the Island from the mainland.

A Southern Water spokesman said: "Identifying all properties and customers affected by an interruption can be difficult. Where this is the case, people who have been affected but not contacted by us should make a claim within three months."

If the company fails to get in touch within 20 working days of the interruption, customers may be entitled to a further penalty payment of £20 which will be automatically credited to their account.

It is understood companies which lost income when they were forced to close will have to claim separately.

It is not known how much the the total claim will cost the company but it is estimated it could run to £2 million for domestic homes alone.

The claim form is on the company's website. https://www.southernwater.co.uk/help-advice/contact-us

Bottled water is still being dished out today, with pick-up points in Leysdown, Sheerness and Queenborough opened up again this morning.