Actually Noah of Swindon - that's just the kind of pathetic attitude that allows situations like this to exist! Companies such as Trent Water and respective governing bodies are grossly negligent through cost-cutting and concentration on ever higher profits! And as long as the good old British public with their 'stiff upper lip' and gallant stoicism make excuses for this gross negligence - situations like this will just continue!! What about the thousands of people who - as well as living with flooded homes, and no running water - now no longer have an income? Have you given a donation to the Red Cross or anything more substantial than criticize we who are having to exist through this time? The louder the complaints - the more chance there is of more efficient services! And as Severn Trent deemed it necessary to advertise their grossly inflated profits of £300million today - obviously they are money-driven - so? - Hit them in their pockets with demands for compensation!

L C Gillatt, CHELTENHAM, UK

What would happen if everyone in Gloucestershire refused to pay our water rates, until Severn Trent can prove to us it will not happen again? What's the worse they could do, turn our water off for non payment.

One bowser for nearly 50+ houses, about one small bowser for about 150-200 people.

We've had no water in our bowser for over 24 hours now. To start off with, it was filled twice a day, and it was empty within an hour, now the new improved mini tanker idea is worse. A couple of bottles of water is only just enough for a small family to drink. But what about hygiene???

While driving around Gloucestershire today, while working, I've only seen one small tanker, in 9 hours!!!

Could Severn Trent do any worse... I doubt it!

I guess they will make a nice profit out of there rubbish collection side ( aka Biffa), with all the skips that the area will need.

Siran, Gloucester, Gloucestershire

These companies have only one aim - to make money, which is why privatising our infrastructure was always going to cause problems. Private companies will always take risks with business continuity planning and disaster recovery if it puts their profits at risk. The result is we have unacceptable single points of failure across our critical utilities. Worse still, the government was warned several years ago as a result of previous flooding.

Danny, Cheltenham, GLOS

Are the water companies to blame?
Is anyone to Blame?
As I understand it if we had drainage to protect from 100 year storms we would still of had problems.

Stephen A, needs to get real, and note that Severn Trent has one of the cheapest water charges, does he expect water older than 48 hours, normally, its stale.

That water works has never before had this problem, I hope he always gets thing right in his job, and can forsee all possible problems.

Mike D, Leicester, leicester

I'm of the opinion that the recent events around gloucestershire are not the fault of Severn Trent, how is it their fault that Mother Nature is stamping her authority. I currently pay rates, work all day Monday to Friday and live on my own and use far less water than a family of 4 but I do not expect anything by way of compensation for the freak events. In fact I think it is quite disgusting that in a time of crisis we all look immediately for financial compensation rather than helping each other and the company by being patient and considerate.

However given the profits they are making surely it would be wise to plough some of those profits back into the business - fixing leaking pipes, clearing silted drains, etc, etc.

I live in Quedgeley, Tesco's has had plenty of free bottled water, I've found bowsers with water for washing, etc, I have basically been inconvenienced for a couple of weeks - there are a great number of people that would rather be in my situation than theirs.

Steve, Quedgeley, Glos,

Why have a go at at water companies because they make a profit? They did not cause the floods. Tesco made over 2£Billion,do we blame them for obesity? In hindesite the water co's could have built the controls above water flood levels,which they probably will now do. It is easy to be wise after events. Did anyone notice that it started raining the day the latest potter book was released?

Flat Roofer, Llandrindod Wells, Radnor County

Severn Trent should indeed be made to rebate every single household that has lost its water suply in these floods. The £1.1 billion profit they have made in recent years is nothing short of obscene considereing the amount of water lost through leaks.

Nigel, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire

I am so glad that we are helping Severn Trent make its profits, after all, we are still paying them despite having no water.

Our bowser has been dry for over 24 hours now, and they are too small for the number of people they are meant to supply, even if all they are used for is drinking. It is not feasible to only have water for drinking purposes for 2 weeks, we need to flush toilets, wash up and wash some clothing at least, but Severn Trent are abandoning us.

Mrs Shaw, Bishops cleeve, UK

Companies like Severn Trent have one priority; to make a profit. Therefore they will, in spite of well-documented warnings, take risks with business continuity planning and disaster recovery planning before they will take risks with their profits. This is why we have some dangerous single points of failure in our national infrastructure.

The taxpayer is yet again going to have to pick up the tab for fundamental planning errors in the private industry.

Danny, Cheltenham, GLOS

Chris R says

"While not expecting that, I do hope the company plans to rebate us for the period without supply, and more?"

why?

In what sense is the company responsible for the failure of government and local authorities to put in place adequate flood management?

If anything, Severn Trent ought to be suing for the damage done to it's asets.......

Andy Dawson, Crowthorne, Berks, UK

Will £300 million pounds profit be enough to cover the Severn Trent directors and senior managems pension needs? That requirement needs to be addressed before the costs of flooding can be addressed. The Labour Party must be very proud of their water management systems!!!!!

Raymond, Belfast,

Well, what's wrong with Severn-Trent making a good profit? The population of Glostershire and especially round Tewkesbury are staunch Tories and repeatedly voted for the Thatcher government that privatised
their previously state-owned water-board. Theyve certainly never returned a Labour MP. So to the people of Tewkesbury I say "you voted for it!" I hope the water company screws you for every penny they can get out of your greedy tory-voting backsides.

Mike James, Tewkesbury,

Don't conflate massive natural disasters and water company profits... Journalists do it to make a headline, it's their job. People don't have to rise to the bait. There's a separate debate about whether utilities should be renationalised or how to control profits, but in this case Severn Trent got hit, like their customers, by something unforeseeable. It's just stupid to start whining about the company as if it ordered the rain and has deliberately made people's lives miserable. If you've been flooded, it's awful, but it's no-one's fault, okay?

Liz S, Conwy, Conwy

Last year just before I left to study in the USA, London had a hospipe ban, because according to Thames Water the water from the rain was the wrong type. Now a year on we a floods in their extreamities. I wonder if Thames Water are bringing out their buckets now?

Kamal Singhrao, Sonoma, (Brit Expat), California/USA

Severn Trent have closed down treatment plants and centralised all their water treatment for the area in 1 place. This was done purely to boost their profits by cutting their costs.

They have NO proper contingency plans in place. Residents in Cheltenham, Gloucester, Tewkesbury and now Stroud have been told that they will have no running water for 2 weeks.

Severn Trent have now gone crying to COBRA because their so called contingency plans don't work and they cannot keep the 900 bowsers they have in place topped up.

I invite the Board and Severn Trent the the major share holders to come to Cheltenham and live in the conditions their GREED has forced upon us.

Announcing these obscene profits at this time was extremely offensive and I hope the board of Directors are ashamed. But I guess we don't matter - all they care about is the money in their bank accounts.

Anyone know what 350,000 people moving their water supply to another company would do to ST's profits?

Steve A, Cheltenham,

Why on earth should the water company compensate people for events that are beyond its control? It's not as if they caused the floods is it? The pathethic first three comments on this page make me embarrased to be British. Rather than bleating for compensation why don't you get some self-respect, self-reliance & sort yourselves out?

Noah, Swindon,

What kind of adults are those children who opened the taps and drained the bowsers going to be?
The mentality is impossible to comprehend.

John Doe, London,

"Severn Trent, which supplies water to the flood-stricken towns of Gloucestershire" - er, no they don't. Not since Sunday here. Our water is now supplied out of the back of an estate car by the parish council.

Andrew Oakley, Alderton, Glos, GL20 8NX

It says a lot about how Severn Trent look on their customers if they can smugly announce such a thing when over 300,000 people have no running water and will have none for upto 3 weeks.

Severn Trent cut costs (and boosted profits) by centralising the water purification for a large area into one single site with NO proper backups. The reservoirs feeding the towns have less than 48 hours capacity and Severn Trent knew this but went ahead.

I cordially invite the Board of Directors of Severn Trent and their major shareholders to show solidarity by joining us as we wallow in sewage for two weeks - I can't offer you running water because I don't have any but I'm sure you wont mind.

I really hope you feel proud of the way you've treated your customers - you've put our bills up by more than inflation year on year and pocketed the cash.

Anyone know what effect on their profits loosing 100,000+ bill payers will have? We can easily move to another supplier

Stephen A, Cheltenham,

Would dredging silted up river beds be a step forward as a future prevention plan?

Gini, Worthing, W Sussex

Severn Trent are charging £279 p.a. for water a rise of 5.7%
Up here in lancashire where water is abundant I pay £416.80 p.a. through United Utility. If ST are making £300 million profit what on earth are UU making. The government say it is cheaper to live up north, what a load of tosh.

Joe, Rochdale, UK

So the shareholders have receieved £580 million in the last year and the water company expects to make £300 million profit this year, but the Government is only handing out £10 million to those affected.

Am I the only one who thinks that the Government works for the City and not for the people who elected it?

Bry Barnes, Somerset, Uk

A real St, Swithins!
40 days and nights of rain.
Standard myth and must be generations of experience but not mentioned.
A paper years ago, 1980, about the effects of the planets on Saturn rings showed a clear connection resonance. How far is the Earth's atmosphere adapted by these big planets but not settled theory. A Swithins resonance!

Dr MI Barton MA. MBA.PhD, Oxford, UK

i think the city can expect much reduced dividends next year ,those of us in the gloucester ,cheltenham area will expecting a big discount on our next bills for the farce we have witnessed in recent days

josh, gloucester,

This is a sick joke, surely?

Lisa , Cheltenham, Gloucestershire

Er, are those of us without water for anything up to two weeks due to receive any compensation from Severn Trent? I understand the shareholders expect dividends, but surely we too might expect some compensation for the disgusting state we have been left in? I have spent the afternoon taking water to people who have no cars and can't get to the distribution point because they are frail and elderly. My clothes stink, my hair stinks, and I have at least ten more days of this to look forward to.

"Severn Trent... is on course to make profits of nearly £300 million this year. The company told investors in the City yesterday that there was no reason to change its outlook for its financial year to March 2008 despite the floods."

That was insensitive to say the least. Luckily that works out as about £857 per person effected I think. :) While not expecting that, I do hope the company plans to rebate us for the period without supply, and more?

Chris R, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire