Fleets of emergency 'water' tankers have been spotted on Sheppey again.

They have been parked in Scrapsgate Road, Minster, and Brielle Way, West Minster, at temporary traffic lights outside sewage pumping stations.

A spokesman for Southern Water said the tankers were carrying sewage this time while engineers repaired a burst main in Thomsett Way near the Rushenden Road sewage pumping station.

He said: "The tankers are being used to manage flows so customers can use their facilities as normal. We’re sorry if the noise from the tankers causes any inconvenience."

The project engineer working on the Rushenden Road excavation said: "The main, which is more than a metre in diameter, burst deep underground, probably from old age. This is the terminal site for the Island's sewage so we had to turn off the sister stations to stop the flow."

Waste from pumping stations at West Minster and Scrapsgate Road was being ferried to the Rushenden sewage treatment works by the fleet of emergency tankers. When in full flow, the main can handle 1,000 litres of sewage a second.

Emergency repairs were completed today (Friday) so temporary traffic lights at West Minster and Scrapsgate Road could be stood down. But Thomsett Way remained closed and will need resurfacing.

Residents normally only see the tankers when the Island is threatened with a water shortage.

The last time the water supply was cut off, when the main burst near Kingsferry Bridge in July, the tankers were used to fill up reservoirs and could often be seen parked along the Old Ferry Road.