Both Southern Water and South East Water (SEW) - which supply parts of Kent, Surrey and Sussex - said cold weather brought by Storm Goretti and a power cut at pumping plants were to blame for the outages.
Linden Kemkaran, leader of KCC, declared a major incident across the county on Monday morning, saying more households have been impacted in the last 24 hours.
"We are putting additional arrangements in place to prepare for further potential disruption," she said in a statement on X.
The issue has forced a number of schools in Kent and Sussex to close on the first day of the week.
It comes after 24,000 properties in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, spent days without any running water, and almost two weeks without drinkable water last month.
Here is what you need to know.
Where is affected?
Currently, roughly 30,000 properties across the two counties are impacted, South East Water said in a statement to Sky News.
"This includes 16,500 properties in East Grinstead and the surrounding areas in Sussex, with parts of Tunbridge Wells also affected, along with some localised issues in other parts of Kent," the company said.
At the time of writing 11 postcodes across four areas are still experiencing little to no water supply, according to the SEW website. These include:
• Maidstone
• West Sussex and surrounding areas
• Tunbridge Wells
• Canterbury
• Whitstable
SEW said supplies to East Grinstead, West Sussex, and Blean, Maidstone, are not expected to return until Tuesday.
Southern Water said on 11 January that households in Thanet, Sittingbourne, Medway and surrounding areas are currently not experiencing a loss of water supply, but some drinking water storage reservoirs are at low levels due to Storm Goretti.
The company said this could mean there is a "higher risk of supply issues in the coming days" but it is "taking action now to do all we can to prevent that".
What caused the problem?
SEW said Storm Goretti, which hit the UK last week, affected its ability to "treat the raw water at the normal rate at our main Sussex water treatment works".
It said this, coupled with the outbreak of burst water mains due to freezing conditions across Sussex, means its drinking water storage levels are running low.
SEW incident manager Mike Court said: "We're sorry to our customers across Kent and Sussex who are experiencing issues with their drinking water supply, including no water, intermittent supply interruptions or low pressure."
He said water treatment works continue to operate at full capacity and tankers are "pumping water directly into the storage tanks and network to increase the amount of water available in the affected areas".
Repair teams are also working "around the clock" to fix leaks and bursts, Mr Court said.
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'Extremely frustrating'
Dave and Valerie Matson have lived in and around Tunbridge Wells for 55 years. They told Sky News that the current water outages are "extremely frustrating".
"I know it's jolly cold, but this should not happen," Mrs Matson said.
Mr Matson, a former director of a company, said it has only been a short while since residents in Tunbridge Wells were last affected by water outages.
"It destroyed Tunbridge Wells in the run-up to Christmas," he said.
"Literally all the shops were shut... and the restaurants, normally they are rammed in December, but they have lost thousands and thousands. I think it is absolutely appalling."
Mr Matson put the problems down to "greed and incompetence" of water companies, adding: "They have got a duty to their customers, they have got to talk to their shareholders and say 'we have got to spend money, we have got to do what we should have done over the years'."
He added: "We can cope with it, but I feel so sorry for the vulnerable people and businesses. It is hard enough for shops in this county and across the UK."
Where are bottled water stations located?
Multiple bottled water stations have been set up in the area to distribute water to local residents until supplies are fully restored.
SEW said its customer care team is also delivering bottled water to the customers on our Priority Services Register who are most in need and we have carried out 5,700 deliveries of bottled water over the weekend.
The company said the following stations are open until 10pm:
• Kings Centre - Moat Rd, East Grinstead RH19 3LN
• East Grinstead Sports Club - Saint Hill Rd, East Grinstead RH19 4JU
• East Court, College Lane, East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 3LT
• Tunbridge St Marks Recreation Ground, Tunbridge Wells TN2 5LS
Recurring problems at South East Water
In 2023, SEW was found to be the worst company for supply interruptions in the UK. Since then there have been multiple high-profile outages.
The last was in December 2025, when 24,000 people suffered days without water in Tunbridge Wells after a "water quality issue" at the Pembury Water Treatment Works.
Earlier this month, chief executive of SEW David Hinton was criticised by MPs for a "fundamentally lacking" human response to the crisis during an Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee hearing.
One committee member said they were "quite shocked" at the "lack of accountability" the chief executive was taking for the incident, although he did begin his questioning with an apology to customers.
He blamed a lack of infrastructure in the South East for the failures and said that the risks are "inevitable" without investment.
The four people who died in the crash involving a taxi and a car have been named as Masrob Ali, 54, who is believed to be the taxi driver, Mohammed Jibrael Mukhtar, 18, Farhan Patel, 18, and Mohammed Danyaal, 19.
Five passengers from both cars - a Seat Leon and a Citroen C4 Picasso - remain in hospital.
Greater Manchester Police said: "In the Citroen, a 29-year-old woman suffered potentially life-threatening injuries. A 28-year-old woman and a 30-year-old man suffered serious injuries and a 29-year-old man has minor injuries.
"An 18-year-old man, who was a passenger in the Seat, remains in hospital for treatment on minor injuries."
Detective Inspector Andrew Page said: "We are still in the early stages of our investigation and work is ongoing to establish the full circumstances of this terrible incident.
"As an investigation team we would encourage people to be mindful of sharing footage on social media given the impact this will have on all the families involved in such a tragic incident."
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Footage from a nearby property shared online showed a head-on crash, before both cars and debris were sent flying in different directions.
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said emergency teams responded to the crash on Wigan Road in Bolton at around 12.50am.
"Firefighters arrived quickly to make the area safe and used cutting equipment to help remove people from the vehicles before passing them into the care of North West Ambulance Service," they said.
"Greater Manchester Police assisted with cordoning the area. Crews were in attendance for roughly two hours."
A local resident said she was woken by a loud crash and later saw a large amount of debris scattered across the road, along with a red car that had been badly damaged.
Councillor Ayyub Patel, of Bolton Council, told Sky News the "incredibly tragic incident" had left the whole community "devastated".
Most definitely meant as a compliment, the theory here is that Nadhim Zahawi will bring competence and credibility and strengthen the appeal of the fledgling political outfit with donors.
He certainly offers experience, as well as a backstory more engaging than most in the Reform flock.
The Iraqi refugee who arrived in the UK unable to speak English and rose to become a multimillionaire businessman and eventually chancellor.
But perhaps Mr Zahawi's proudest political period was as vaccines minister, overseeing the wildly successful rollout of COVID jabs during the pandemic.
So his is now an odd choice of party, perhaps, given dalliances Reform has had with vaccine scepticism as well as outright vaccine conspiracy theories.
Repeated questions about this apparent mismatch at his inaugural press conference were met with frosty replies - with Mr Zahawi berating journalists for asking "really stupid" questions.
That's not to say he has a spotless track-record, though.
In 2013, he was forced to apologise for claiming taxpayer expenses to supply electricity to his stables.
Five years later, he was reprimanded for attending the controversial men-only 'President's Club' gala.
He was elevated to chancellor in 2022, but days after walking through the Treasury door, appeared to turn on then prime minister Boris Johnson by telling him to resign.
Then the final nail in his frontline political career - his sacking as Tory chairman over unpaid tax.
So given all that, why would an anti-establishment party like Reform embrace someone who - all the evidence suggests - is a fully signed up member of said establishment?
Part of the answer to that is the connections and experience.
But another is the potential for the party's image to be softened in the eyes of more centrist voters who worry about some of Reform's harder edges.
Yes, there is a risk of looking like a 'home for retired Tories' as faces of yesteryear continue to sign up en masse.
But as one Reform figure points out, "the Tory party of ten, fifteen years ago is a damn sight better than the Tory party of now".
So if that's the appeal for Reform, what's in it for their latest signing?
The co-founder of the polling giant YouGov, Nadhim Zahawi is a rich man in his own right with business interests and connections around the world.
Aged 58, why not just go quietly into the sunset?
According to those who know him, that's just not Nadhim Zahawi.
They paint a picture of a man driven by a desire for attention, yes, but also by a hunger to be accepted into the upper echelons of the country he has made his home.
"He can't exist without the attention and without wanting to be taken seriously," one person said.
It's that desire that's got this former minister into hot water in the past.
But it's clear it wasn't something he could switch off - or wanted to switch off - when he departed the Commons.
So with Reform leading in the polls, and the Conservatives still flagging, this ever-ambitious politician believes he's spied one more route back to the top.
David Gowans, 32, hurled the object following a league match between Aberdeen and Dundee United at Tannadice on 17 May 2025.
It struck then Aberdeen player Jack MacKenzie in the face, leaving him with a "deep 2in laceration" to his left eyebrow and a "5cm abrasion" below his left eye.
The incident occurred as fans invaded the pitch following Dundee United's 2-1 win - which secured them fourth spot in the Scottish Premiership and a place in Europe.
Father-of-one Gowans, who was said to have been working as an offshore operator at the time, had been a member of the Aberdeen ultras supporters' group.
Sheriff Alastair Carmichael told him: "Your actions were selfish, stupid, dangerous and utterly irresponsible.
"You must have known that by throwing this item it could hit somebody. If you didn't consider this possibility, the level of recklessness is staggering."
MacKenzie, who now plays for Plymouth Argyle, was struck after he had gone to the area of the pitch in front of the travelling Aberdeen FC fans to thank them for their support.
Sheriff Carmichael was shown CCTV footage of the incident, which showed MacKenzie, 25, lying on the pitch receiving medical attention. He was later taken off the pitch in a wheelchair.
Lifetime ban by Aberdeen FC
Gowans pleaded guilty to culpable and reckless conduct at Dundee Sheriff Court in October.
He was sentenced on Monday. As well as the jail term, Gowans was also banned from attending football matches for 10 years.
He has already been handed a lifetime ban by Aberdeen FC.
Sheriff Carmichael said: "There is no reasonable alternative to a custodial sentence.
"This is needed because of the gravity of this crime, and it is needed in order to adequately punish you and adequately express the public disapproval of this behaviour, and discourage others from behaving in a similar fashion."
'Disastrous mistake'
Prosecutor Lee Corr previously told the court that on the day of the incident Gowans sent text messages to Lynn Fiske, Aberdeen FC's supporter liaison officer, in which he initially denied but later admitted throwing the seat.
In one message, the father-of-one said he "wasn't aiming at anything or anyone" and that the section of seat had just been "there right next to me".
He described it as "a disastrous mistake".
Ms Fiske advised him to turn himself into the police, but Gowans did not and was arrested and charged a couple of days later.
'He let himself and his club down'
During a police interview, Gowans admitted drinking a half litre of vodka prior to leaving home for the match.
Defence lawyer Larry Flynn told the court his client had been inebriated at the time he threw the chair, and that he was so drunk he missed the supporters' bus home to Aberdeen and had to get a taxi instead.
He added that Gowans was "extremely embarrassed" by the incident, and that he accepts "he let himself down and let his football club down".
Helen Nisbet, procurator fiscal for Tayside, Central and Fife, said: "This was disgraceful conduct which could have resulted in far greater consequences.
"David Gowans' crass behaviour could also have jeopardised the safety of other supporters.
"As prosecutors, we will not hesitate to deal with this type of offending which puts people at serious risk of harm."
Warning: This story contains descriptions some readers may find distressing.
Rhydian Jamieson, 28, left the infant with life-changing injuries after the assault at a home in the West Wales county of Ceredigion in January last year.
Swansea Crown Court heard Jamieson "snapped" and "flung" the baby at a television set before fleeing.
He pleaded guilty in April, and sentencing Jamieson on Monday, Judge Paul Thomas KC said the defendant, who refused to attend the hearing, showed "no remorse" for his actions.
The judge said: "It was a fit of uncontrolled temper, probably because the baby was simply crying, in the way that babies do.
"It was clear that the baby needed immediate and urgent medical attention... You did not even bother to check whether the baby was alive.
"Like the coward that you are, you just left (the baby) there, concealed under a duvet.
"That, in my view, was an act of the most horrendous callousness."
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The baby, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was found lying face down under a duvet by family members.
The infant was bruised and bloodied, with a fractured skull.
Jamieson fled the scene and made phone calls to friends, saying: "I think I've killed someone."
The court heard he described having "lost it" and said he had "flung (the baby) at the telly".
"I'm going to be on the news as a baby killer," he said.
Swansea Crown Court heard the child had irreversible brain damage and would require support for life as a result of the injuries.
Caroline Rees KC, prosecuting, said: "(The baby) did survive these injuries, despite them being life-threatening.
"But the effect upon (the baby) has been extremely life-changing.
"(The baby) will require life-long care and support in daily life."
In a statement to the court, the baby's mother said: "You are nothing but a spiteful, disgusting person.
"What has happened has completely changed my life and (my child's) life forever."
Jamieson justified his failure to attend the hearing on Monday by telling the court he had been "wrongfully charged" and had already "suffered enough pain mentally".
Judge Thomas said Jamieson would not be allowed unsupervised access to children even upon his release from prison.
Dyfed-Powys Police were called to a village in Ceredigion just before 10.15pm on 15 January 2025 over concern for the welfare of an infant.
The child was taken to hospital in a critical condition.
Gary Williams, of Dyfed-Powys Police, said: "We still do not know what made him act in this way - what made him 'snap', to use his own word - but even if he had revealed the catalyst for this vile behaviour, it would in no way make it excusable.
"The baby's family has been thrown into turmoil since the despicable attack on January 15, spending a significant amount of time in hospital, and suffering months of anxiety. I would like to commend them for their strength."