Jets of water were sent high into the air after a water main burst in Tunbridge Wells.

South East Water confirmed customers in the Broadmead area raised the alarm at around 6pm.

Distribution manager, Mark Rice, said: “Our technician found that a four inch cast iron water main had burst.

"Our contractor was on site as quickly as possible and the repair carried out.

“We tried to keep water supplies to as many customers as possible, but we think about 15 customers were without water for a short time while we dealt with this emergency.

“Unfortunately emergencies like this do happen from time to time.

"We have 540 million litres of water a day being transported around 9,000 miles of underground pipeline.

"There are also six million joints which have to withstand high pressure 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"Inevitably sometimes these pipes and connections fail unexpectedly, but we work around the clock to repair them as quickly as possible."

• Anyone who spots a leak can report it to South East Water on 0333 000 3330.