UPDATE: 6.48AM

A spokesman for Welsh Water confirmed that water has been returned to customers in Abercarn, Cross Keys, Ynysddu and the surrounding areas.

He said: “Our engineers have worked around the clock since Wednesday morning to repair the pipe. The repair was completed last night and our engineers have worked overnight to return water to the network.

“The main that was damaged is a large, very high pressure water main therefore refilling  the network has had to be done carefully as refilling too quickly could have damaged the pipe and caused further bursts. 

“Please be assured that both the safety of our people and the needs of our customers remain our key priority.

“We will continue to tanker water into the network until the levels in the network return to normal.   Supplies should be returning to normal this morning however some customers may experience an intermittent water supply, low water pressure or some slight discoloration until the main is fully recharged.  Any discoloration should clear within a short period of time.  . 

“We apologies for any inconvenience caused and again thank customers for bearing with us”.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HUNDREDS of properties were left without water yesterday when contractors fractured a water pipe in Crosskeys.

The contractors, employed by National Resources Wales, were working on Risca’s flood defences when a pipe was damaged in Waunfawr Park Road.

The fractured pipe created a huge spring of water and left an estimated 400 to 500 properties without a supply over two days.

The incident affected families and businesses across Abercarn, Crosskeys, Wattsville, Pontywaun and Risca and will reportedly cost half a million pounds to repair. 

Dwr Cymru Welsh Water has worked to resolve issues since Wednesday by moving water in tankers to different areas, alongside setting up several Caerphilly collection points where residents can receive bottled water.

Priority services delivering water to vulnerable customers have also been in operation but some residents believe they were “neglected.”

Trainee teacher Debbie Downes, 34, of Wattsville, said that the village was without water since 10am on Wednesday. She said she was unable to wash her children, six-year-old Megan and two-year-old Imogen.

She said: “It is quite difficult to manage when you have two children and you cannot use the toilet or wash them.

“I also had to pay to leave my children with private child-carers due to Cwmfelinfach School closing.

“I cannot afford to keep buying water and as we can’t flush the toilet, there is sewage basically sitting in our bathroom.”

Ysgol Cwm Gwyddon school and Cwmcarn High also closed as a result of the Crosskeys incident.

Wattsville shop owner Mohammad Faqir, 59, added: “They should have had someone supplying water to each valley as not everyone is able to travel to collection points.”

Mark Wannell, 47, of the Crop Shop salon, was also disrupted by the water outages near Gwyddon Road, Abercarn.

He said: “We have had no water pressure and the water is brown, murky and undrinkable.

“I’m also scared to turn on my combi-boiler and haven’t showered in two days.”

A spokesman for Dwr Cymru Welsh Water confirmed engineers have been working to fix the problem since Wednesday, replacing 25 metres of pipe work.

He said: “This is a very large high pressure water main and a significant amount of water was lost through the damage.

“Both the safety of our people and the needs of our customers remains our key priority.”

Welsh Water anticipates that water supplies will return during the course of the week, with some customers experiencing “intermittent supplies” as repairs continue.

A spokeswoman for Caerphilly County Borough Council added: “We’re receiving regular updates from Dwr Cymru Welsh Water and are in regular contact with schools and residential complexes in the area to help ensure they are coping with the disruption.”

National Resources Wales also confirmed the damage was caused by its contractors.

A spokeswoman said: “Contractors working on our behalf to build the Risca flood scheme in Caerphilly have caused damage to a main water supply affecting the Abercarn area. 

“Our contractors immediately notified Dwr Cymru Welsh Water and we apologise to all local people directly affected and are working closely with DCWW to rectify the situation. 

“Our contractors were also aware of the proximity to the main water supply and we will be undertaking a full investigation to find out how this happened.”

Those with any concerns about their water supply should call Dwr Cymru Welsh Water’s helpline on 0800 052 0130.