A second water company has announced it will introduce a hosepipe ban as temperatures are set to soar to 32C in the UK.
As the United Kingdom battles with the aftermath of its driest spring since 1893, with dry conditions expected to persist through the summer, millions more Britons have now been placed under a hosepipe ban.
The first ban, across Yorkshire, came into effect on Friday after a “drought” was declared in the region. Millions of residents have been barred from using hosepipes to water gardens, wash cars, fill hot tubs and paddling pools and clean outdoor surfaces. Anyone breaching the ban, which is legally enforceable, may be fined £1,000.
Northwest England has been in drought conditions since late May.
South East Water has since become the second company to introduce a hose pipe ban. It said 1.4 million of its customers in Kent and Sussex would have their use of hosepipes and sprinklers restricted.
In its announcement of the ban, it stated that demand for water across the two counties had reached “the highest levels” this year and had “now reached a point where they have exceeded the limits in the company’s drought plan”.
It said that on 30 June, it supplied 680 million litres of water, more than 100 million litres over the daily average for summer. “On days like this, we’re pumping enough water to supply an additional four towns the size of Maidstone or Eastbourne,” the company said.
South East Water also supplies parts of Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire, but it did not introduce bans for those regions, adding that it was continuing to monitor the situation there.
David Hinton, chief executive officer, said: “Providing the public water supply during this prolonged period of hot and dry weather continues to be challenging.
“Continued demand at this level presents a serious concern to ensure that we can protect the environment and keep everyone supplied. Despite asking for customers’ help to use water for essential uses only, regrettably we’ve now been left with no choice but to introduce this temporary use ban restriction to protect customers’ supplies and the environment across Kent and Sussex.
“The temporary restrictions, announced today, will mean that customers will be prevented from using hosepipes for watering their gardens, washing cars, windows and patios, or filling swimming and paddling pools.”
Earlier this week, Thames Valley Water warned it could also have to announce a hosepipe ban unless current water shortages improved “considerably”.
It comes as forecasters said temperatures of more than 30C are expected to peak over the weekend, with a third heatwave this summer expected to be longer-lived and extend further north and west into a larger part of the UK than previously this year.
Possible highs of 33C on Saturday mean the third heatwave will fall short of the top temperatures of 34.7C recorded earlier in July, but this one will be more widespread, the Met Office said.
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has urged people to drink water regularly, seek shade and use sunscreen.
Steve Cole, policy director at RoSPA, said: “Heat is no longer just a holiday perk, it’s a growing public health risk.
“We’re seeing more frequent and intense heatwaves, both in the UK and globally, and the data shows a clear rise in heat-related illness and fatalities.”
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