A severe drought has been officially declared across parts of southern England following months of below-average rainfall and the hottest summer on record, according to the Environment Agency and the National Drought Group.
The restrictions and drought status impact areas including parts of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, East Sussex, and West Sussex. Concurrently, approximately 30 million people face active hosepipe bans as water levels dwindle in reservoirs such as Wimbleball on Exmoor, where supplies have dropped significantly and river levels are described as exceptionally low.
Despite the worsening conditions, the government has stated that customer tap water supplies will remain uninterrupted. The severe drought designation is intended to trigger proactive measures to safeguard water resources before disruption can occur.
Under the new directives, water companies are instructed to monitor river and reservoir levels on a daily basis and maintain rigorous water quality oversight. Utilities providers, including South East Water serving Sussex and Kent, have deployed dozens of repair crews to fix network leaks and minimize supply losses while farmers express mounting concern over potential water shortages for agriculture.