Kent water failure was foreseen and could have been stopped, regulator says

South East Water told residents the water from their taps was unsuitable for drinking, giving to pets, brushing teeth, washing children or bathing in with an open wound. Photograph: Gareth Fuller/PA

A failure at a water treatment centre that left tens of thousands of Kent households without water was foreseen weeks before it happened and could have been stopped, the regulator has said.

Twenty-four thousand homes in the Tunbridge Wells area were without drinking water for two weeks from 30 November last year due to a failure at the Pembury water treatment centre.