AN elderly Exmoor woman was left in freezing conditions without water for two days for a second time after a burst outside pipe in her bungalow home.

Seventy-five-year-old Shirley Fountain said she was unable to shower and had to fill a watering can from a water butt just to flush the toilet in her home in Pound Close, Brushford.

Mrs Fountain said she had suffered issues with the cold weather ever since moving into the Magna Housing bungalow five years ago.

She said the night storage heating system was too expensive to run and did not work properly and each winter she had to go to stay with family members during the coldest periods of weather to stay warm and be able to shower.

Mrs Fountain said: “I was getting bills of £300 and £400 per quarter and by 3 pm in the afternoon the radiators were stone cold.

“Last year the temperature dropped to minus 10 degrees and the pipe burst then and they came and fixed it and they said it would be ok, but it was not.”

She said her inability to heat the bungalow meant it was riddled with dampness and the situation was affecting her health.

Mrs Fountain said: “I have got a nasty cough starting up which I know will turn into an infection.

“My health has deteriorated since I have been living here.”

She said a local councillor who had tried to help told her he was aware of 30 other similar properties which were also suffering from damp.

A Magna spokesperson said: "Our customers' safety and wellbeing is our top priority.

"We have been providing services and support to Ms Fountain since she moved into her home, including advice, maintenance, and welfare support. "We would welcome Ms Fountain to engage with us to help resolve her concerns.

"Most recently there was a leak to an outside tap, which we responded to as an emergency.

"The water supply inside the home would have been unaffected."