Staff at a Wisbech firm had to bale water out of puddles to flush their toilets after a burst main left them without water for six days.

Phoenix Engineering is just one of the firms in Weasenham Lane that suffered after the pipe burst for the second time. It was finally put right at 9pm on Tuesday.

Helen Foster said: “We’re struggling. Gravity means water is pouring into the yard and people have to wear wellies to go into the car park.

“We can’t flush toilets, wash hands or make drinks and it has been like that since last Wednesday (18).”

The road was closed for three days last week and the problem appeared to have been fixed but by Monday (23) it came back and the water began gushing again.

“There is a cafe at the front of us, I have no idea how they are coping,” she said.

An Anglia water spokesman said: “We’re very sorry businesses on Weasenham Lane have been affected by the burst mains over the last few days. “Our engineer will be arriving on site and visiting them to investigate and get these customers back on water as soon as possible.”

“There’s another burst pipe but it’s a different one from the one affected last week.

“With how cold it’s been you see more bursts because the ground moves when it freezes - it can damage the pipes.

“This pipe is smaller so shouldn’t affect as many customers and there shouldn’t be a road closure.

“We will be putting in two way traffic lights while work is carried out.”

Anglia Water said the problem was fixed by 9pm on Tuesday but warned the water “may look a little cloudy or discoloured” and suggested running the tap for a few minutes to improve appearance.

“We’re really sorry for any inconvenience we’ve caused by the interruption,” said the spokesman.