The clean-up operation has begun in Werrington after major flooding caused damage to properties and structural damage to roads.
The incident began on Sunday evening (May 26) with a burst water main on Lincoln Road, which sprayed water onto the road and, due to the sloped nature of the street, down into a number of properties.
Emergency services were called to the scene and a police was cordon was set up while the occupants of around 20 homes were evacuated.
Peterborough Volunteer Fire Brigade were among the rescue crews that attended and their crews were assisting in efforts to pump the water; up to a gallon every four seconds according to residents who were on the scene at the time.
One resident said: “It was frightening, we started hearing these strange noises, before quite quickly we were watching water rush into the whole downstairs of the house and the garden, ruining all of the furniture as it went.
"It really was a horrendous experience."
Another resident added: “The whole of the downstairs of the house has been flooded. We have got no electricity as the water got into the circuits.
"We are awaiting a visit from the assessor, we believe there has been around £9,000 of damage.”
A further resident recounted a story to the Peterborough Telegraph of her elderly mother having to be carried out of her home by three firemen.
A section of Lincoln Road, just off David’s Lane and past the Crab and Winkle pub remains closed and is expected to remain that way for the rest of the week.
Anglian Water workers remain on the scene, as are construction crews working to replace and pipe and repair surface, which was significantly damaged by the force of the blast.
Such was the pressure, the tarmac has risen up in some areas and burst in others. A large layer of tarmac has had to be removed for crews to begin the repairs.
A spokesperson for Anglian Water said: “Although no customers are off water, the repair is slightly more complex than originally planned, so we’re estimating that it will take a couple of days to fix.
"After this, the road will need to be excavated and repaired, so we expect to open the road by the end of this week.
"We would like to reassure those customers affected that we will pick up the tab to get things back to normal as quickly as possible.
“In order to keep our teams and other road users safe while we work, we have needed to close part of Lincoln Road, with a full diversion in place.
"We’d like to thank our customers in Peterborough for bearing with us while we carry out this emergency work
"We apologise for any inconvenience caused.”
Bus services in the area have been re-routed while the road remains closed. Instead of the bus stop located just past Sharma Leas, residents have been asked to use either the bus stop on Southwell Avenue or the first stop in Werrington Village, close to the community (parish) centre.
