Water supplies have been restored to households in the Preston area after being off for nearly 12 hours.

Homeowners awoke to low water pressure and in many cases no water at all.

A broken 18-inch pipe in Cumeragh Lane near Whittingham was traced as the cause of the lack of water.

United Utilities engineers are continuing to work on fixing the broken pipe but the firm says water supplies have been restored.

A spokesman said: “We have routed water supplies from other areas to compensate for the Cumeragh Lane breakage.

“You should now see water pressure returning to normal in the next few hours.”

United Utilities has been putting water trucks in locations across Fulwood to pump additional water into the network.

One is in position at Royal Preston Hospital and another is just off Garstang Road in Fulwood.

Households are also warned that for the next few hours they may experience brown water or white water.

Discolouration can be from a light straw yellow colour to dark brown.

If you experience this then run the cold water tap in the kitchen at a trickle until it clears.

Some people may be experiencing ‘white water’. This is where the water is white, milky or cloudly.

Fill a glass and allow it to stand, you’ll see the cloudiness clears from the bottom of the glass upwards. It’s caused by air bubbles and is safe to drink.

How is your water? Let us know in the comments below