Edinburgh tram contractors struck 'buried' fire hydrant which left 150 properties in Leith without water for 3 hours

An Edinburgh City Council spokesperson confirmed an old buried fire hydrant in Constitution Street was hit but that contractors were on the site immediately to fix the issue and handed out bottled drinking water to residents who needed it.

It is understood the damage was caused by machinery as part of the work to extend Edinburgh’s tram line to Newhaven.

About 150 properties were affected before the issue was rectified, thought to be at around 2:30pm this afternoon.

Scottish Water published details on its website at about 11:20am today saying they were investigating customer reports of an "interruption in their water supply," and warned people they might experience no water supply or intermittent water pressure and the possibility of "discoloured" water.

Construction work on the Edinburgh’s Trams to Newhaven project restarted on June 22nd following the Scottish Government giving the green light for the construction industry to restart.

Work on the project was stopped at the end of March to comply with government guidance and to protect the safety of workers and residents during the pandemic.