Gatwick Airport faces water outage across both terminals

Both terminals at Gatwick Airport are disrupted by a water supply problem linked to a Horley-area outage. Toilets have been reported out of order and restaurants closed. SES Water blamed complications from a power outage at Bough Beech Water Treatment Works, while the airport offers bottled water and other contingency measures. Travellers and nearby residents are feeling the impact on a busy Sunday morning.

Key Takeaways

• Both terminals at Gatwick Airport have lost normal water supply.
• Toilets are reportedly out of order and restaurants have closed amid the disruption.
• SES Water ties the fault to a power outage at Bough Beech Water Treatment Works.
• Bottled water and other contingency measures are in place for passengers and staff.
• Horley and wider RH6 residents have also reported low pressure or no water.

What happened at Gatwick Airport this morning?

London Gatwick Airport confirmed a water issue in the Horley area is causing disruption across the airport on Sunday, 26 July. In statements reported by the BBC and local outlets, officials said the problem affects water supply in both terminals and remains under investigation.

Passengers have faced closed restaurants and toilets reported out of order. The airport apologised for the inconvenience and said it would provide further updates as the situation develops.

Why is the water supply failing?

SES Water, which serves parts of Kent, Surrey, West Sussex and south London as well as the airport, said customers were seeing low water pressure or a temporary loss of supply. The company linked the problems to complications caused by a power outage at its Bough Beech Water Treatment Works.

SES Water said it was working to overcome those complications and return the treatment works to supply as quickly as possible. It confirmed Gatwick Airport was affected and that teams were working with the airport to restore normal service.

The supplier initially pointed to customers in TN8, TN11 and parts of RH1. Residents in the RH6 postcode district, which primarily covers Horley and Gatwick Airport, have also reported being without water or experiencing low pressure.

How are passengers and residents being helped?

Gatwick Airport said bottled water is being made available to passengers and staff across both terminals. Other contingency measures are being put in place to ensure passenger welfare while the outage is investigated.

SES Water said it was delivering bottled water to its most vulnerable customers on its priority services register while engineers worked to restore supplies. The company thanked customers and partners at the airport for their patience and apologised to those affected.

For more infrastructure and disruption coverage, see our Future Tech & AI Wonders hub. Flights and terminal operations can still be stressful when basic facilities fail, so travellers should follow official airport and SES Water updates before setting out.