Everything Yorkshire Water's CEO said on Stannington gas flood disaster as she confirms independent investigation

People and businesses in the suburbs of Stannington, Malin Bridge and Hillsborough were cut off on Friday, December 2, when a water pipe burst and leaked into the gas main, and they were forced to endure sub-zero temperatures without central heating and hot water for weeks.

Gas supplier, Cadent, announced two weeks later on Friday, December 16 that gas had been restored to the 3,000 affected properties, however The Star is looking into a report that at least one home in the area is still without gas.

Residents are still asking for answers from Yorkshire Water, and the firm’s CEO, Nicola Shaw, appeared on the BBC’s Politics North this morning (Sunday, December 18) for an interview with Tim Iredale.

During the course of the interview, Ms Shaw said Yorkshire Water were still unsure of what caused the burst water main, but would be opening up the source of the leak with Cadent and ‘independent investigators’.

She denied suggestion that Yorkshire Water has not invested enough money in the area’s infrastructure, stating that while the water main which was the source of the leak was built in 1976, it was able to cope with this year’s record-breaking summer when more water than ever was used. She also stated that the £242million in profits made by Yorkshire Water this year had been ‘used to pay debt that was taken on to fund infrastructure’.

Stannington’s MP, Olivia Blake, also appeared on Politics North and said that she, and her constituents welcomed confirmation that an independent investigation would take place.

“Given the number of conversations I've been having this week, I don't think people would trust a non-independent review of what happened with that main,” Ms Blake said.

Here is everything Nicola Shaw (NS) said about the Stannington gas flood disaster.

Tim Iredale (TI): Are we any closer to knowing exactly what happened here?

NS: "I think we are, yes, we really have had a terrible time for the people of Stannington caused originally by a burst in a water main. It's a water main that pumps water up to the top of the hill - Stannington's right at the top of the hill - so that we've got enough water for everyone up there. And sadly, it burst on the 2nd of December. We repaired it within four hours and water was back on to 32 customers who didn't have water immediately thereafter. But then the water was in the gas main and Cadent has been working very hard to try to resolve that, with our support, it's just taken a very long time."

TI: Where has that hole [which led to the leak] come from?

NS: "The water main has been underground since 1976 when it was laid. We haven't had any other problems with it, except for one about a kilometer away over 10 years ago. That hole is where there was a fixture in the pipe. That fixture is no longer there, and we didn't find it when we were sorting out the hole. So we've covered back up the site now and will open it up with Cadent - and independent investigators - to find out what caused that fixture to move. We don't know at the moment."

TI: So to be clear, what do you think caused that hole?

NS: "I don't know, normally you would expect some force to have been applied to the fixture to move it. It's a metal fixture, fixed into a pipe and there must have been a force that moved it. I don't know what that force was at the moment."

TI: You said the water main in question was installed in 1976, so getting on for almost 50 years. Many people in the area, in Stannington and surrounding areas, will say they haven't had the investment in intervening years. Do you accept that?

NS: "Actually I think it was a really good investment when it was made then because it demonstrated that this year, the hottest year we've ever had, the most water we've ever had being consumed over the summer, the main was able to cope. We got enough water for all of the residents in Stannington. There's more work to do - there always is. But yes, that investment was a good investment."

TI: But you're a company that made, what £242million profits last year. Do you accept the argument from many people in Stannington and elsewhere that you should be ploughing far more of that money back into the infrastructure?

NS: "Let me reassure them: we absolutely are. That money was used to pay debt that was taken on to fund infrastructure. We didn't make a dividend to our shareholders. We haven't done so for five years."

TI: Because people in Stannington will say they've had issues there in recent months and years, they've had leaks, they've warned you about the leaks. Why haven't you done anything about it?

NS: "So we have done a review of Stannington. Like everywhere with assets, you want to extend their lives because it's important for customers. Taking water mains out disrupts everyone. A waterway probably lasts 90 to 100 years so we want to get them to live that long. In Stannington we have had more leaks on the distribution network, not on this big network or transmission main, but on the small branches off it. And what I want to do is talk to the residents of Stannington about how we change that and over what period."

TI: Nicola Shaw, we were told that this burst water main let out 1.3million litres of water and we've only just had the hosepipe ban called off that's an awful lot of water to use isn't it?

NS: "It is, that's a very big main in order to bring lots of water up the hill - as I said - to Stannigton and water flows quickly. So I can understand why people are concerned about it. Just to put leaking in context though, over the last three years we've reduced leakage in our network by 10 per cent. That's industry leading, and I'm pleased with what we've done. There's more to do, but that was a good progress we've had."

TI: Next year if we get a hot summer - and we may or may not - and you have to impose a hosepipe ban again people will point the finger, and say hang on, you lost over a million litres of water in this incident alone you need to be better.

NS: "As I've said, I'm not sure what caused this fixing to come out of the pipe yet. It may not be that Yorkshire Water has to do better in this particular instance. I absolutely agree though, we need to be absolutely on it to ensure we look after our network appropriately everywhere."

TI: The people of Stannington have been told they will receive compensation, who pays that compensation?

NS "So we and Cadent will sort it out between us whenever people come to us."

TI: ‘Sort it out between us’ doesn't sound like anyone's taking ownership of this?

NS: "No, absolutely, we have a website: www.yorkshirewater.com/stannington - please let us know on there what you need. We've also been round going door-to-door to make sure we've contacted everybody, they know what to do and we absolutely make sure they get sorted out."

TI: Olivia Blake, you're the local MP for Stannington. I know you spent a lot of time in the area over the past couple of weeks - what do you make of what the chief executive's got to say?

OB: "I think to be honest, my constituents just want answers about what happened and why. And while the focus has rightly been on getting people back on gas I think we really need to see independence within this review, so I'm pleased that Yorkshire Water have offered that. Because, given the number of conversations I've been having this week, I don't think people would trust a non-independent review of what happened with that main. Lots of complaints and concerns about infrastructure, and actually Ofwat have taken Yorkshire Water to task on their investment and they are seen as not doing as much as they possibly could do in terms of investment and they have been asked by Ofwat, which is the regulator, to come forward with an action plan to address it. So I think my constituents rightly have questions and want to understand exactly what went wrong and why."