Water study looks at diesel spill

Diesel was mistaken for chlorine at a reservoir pump

The Drinking Water Inspectorate is studying a report investigating how diesel got into drinking water supplies in Exeter a year ago.

The report by former Devon and Cornwall chief constable Sir John Evans was compiled after he was asked to investigate by South West Water (SWW).

The diesel was mistakenly introduced into a reservoir serving about 2,500 homes in the north of the city.

The findings of Sir John's report have not been made public.

Million calls

The 10 litres of fuel got into the supply after a barrel of diesel was mistaken for chlorine at a pump at Marypole Reservoir last February.

People in Stoke Hill, Pennsylvania and Beacon Heath had to collect water from bowsers and shops faced massive demand for bottled water.

SWW said at the time that Sir John's findings would go to the inspectorate, and the DWI has confirmed it is now studying a document from him, along with other evidence.

SWW's new centre will deal with the one million calls it gets a year

Meanwhile, SWW is unveiling a £2m service centre, featuring a new computerised customer care system, Service Plus, which it says will deal with problems more efficiently.

The company gets more than a million calls a year.

SWW Chief Executive Chris Loughlin said: "Service Plus means our 1.6m customers will always be in the picture about what we are doing as well as how, when and why we are doing it. And even better, we will be doing it faster than ever before.

"We hope it will be the perfect marriage of technology, processes and people."