Work to repair the burst continued until after midnight

The fault in Boringdon Hill, Colebrook, was reported on Tuesday morning and repairs were scheduled for Wednesday.

When householders became alarmed at the volume of water, the road was closed on Tuesday evening for repairs which continued until early on Wednesday.

South West Water said it had to prioritise leaks, and the initial inspection was not deemed serious.

We don't need patch-up jobs, we need a new mains system Donna Finch, Colebrook resident

Spokesman Hilary Weatherley said: "I can understand the anger and frustration of the residents.

"It's frustrating for us too, but it really is a matter of priority. We have tens of thousands of miles of roads which would stretch from here to Australia, and there are thousands of leaks every month.

"When the inspector came yesterday morning it was not considered to be very serious, although it obviously got a lot worse. When it was re-inspected an emergency road closure had to be obtained before the repairs could be carried out."

But resident Donna Finch said the water, which had been running past her property for more than 12 hours, had begun soaking into her home.

She told BBC News: "We don't have gardens to mop up the water. We're straight on the road and it's a constant worry. They don't seem to understand that we don't need patch-up jobs, we need a new mains system."

Daniel Millar, whose property at the bottom of Boringdon Hill, said he had reported the leak at about 1000 BST on Tuesday and was frustrated and angry.

"I shudder to think how many thousands of litres have literally gone down the drain and how much it cost to get emergency crews out at night," he said.