A rogue pig stalled the repair of a burst water main that disrupted rail and road users between Surbiton and London today (November 13).

Both water utility company Thames Water and South Western Rail (SWR) apologised to rail users on Wednesday after lines between Surbiton and Wimbledon were blocked by the fallout from the burst water pipe.

Repairs to the pipe, which Thames Water said was a considerable 48 inches in diameter, were ongoing at 1pm when the Comet spoke with Thames Water.

A spokesperson for the company said that their engineers were "quickly onsite" and continuing to work on fixing the pipe at lunchtime on Wednesday.

They also confirmed that a pig in a nearby field, reportedly named 'Pickle', had disrupted their efforts to fix the pipe.

Your Local Guardian: Pickle the Pig (Thames Water)Pickle the Pig (Thames Water)

Pickle obstructed a key valve engineers needed to reach in order to continue their repair work.

Contrary to a previous report, the pig was "not actually that aggressive, just a bit startled", on site engineers reported.

He was eventually led away by a customer using a packet of crisps, Thames Water told the Comet.

"We’re sorry to anyone who has had a longer journey than normal because of the road closure.

"This is due to a burst on a 48-inch diameter pipe. Our engineers were quickly on site and are working hard to fix the pipe," the Thames Water spokesperson added.

SWR meanwhile apologised to customers hit by the disruption caused by the incident.

Your Local Guardian: (Thames Water)(Thames Water)

Disruption to the lines was expected to last until 4pm, they said.

"Due to a burst water main near the railway between Surbiton and Wimbledon some lines towards London are blocked.

"Train services running through these stations may be cancelled, delayed or revised. Disruption is expected until 16:00," an SWR spokesperson said on Twitter.

Details on how best to avoid the disruption were posted to the SWR website.