UK weather: May set to be driest on record as lockdown sees water firms experience huge demand

People in parts of the UK are being asked to help “make sure there is enough water for everyone”, as companies see huge demand during what looks set to become the driest May on record.

The Met Office is predicting that some regions, especially in the south of England, will have the lowest rainfall figures ever this month when the final statistics are collated on Monday.

Several providers say customers have been using more water than normal, with South East Water saying people doing extra gardening and DIY during the coronavirus lockdown had contributed to an additional 14% being used.

South East Water said it has been pumping an additional 78 million litres a day through its network to keep up.

Customers are being asked to help by “taking simple steps, such as not watering lawns, reusing paddling pool water, and only using dishwashers and washing machines on full loads”.

The firm said such measures would help make sure there’s enough water for everyone after such a dry month.

The dry May comes towards the tail-end of what has already been the sunniest spring in decades.

“Although there are a few days left until the end of the meteorological spring, we’ve already seen the record beaten for the sunniest spring since records began,” said Sky News weather presenter Nazaneen Ghaffar.

“From the 1 March until now, the UK as a whole has had 573.2 hours of sunshine, beating the previous spring record of 553.3 hours, set back in 1948.”

Ghaffar added: “England on its own has experienced 631.1 hours so far and has beaten its own previous record for spring of 594.3 hours.

“As well as this, it looks like May is set to be the driest on record.

“So far, England has only received 16% of its average rainfall.”

The Environment Agency (EA) has said most water companies have “appropriate” reserves.

It also stressed that its calls for people to use their water wisely should not deter anyone from regular hand-washing as part of the fight against COVID-19.

But it confirmed United Utilities had applied to take water from a Cumbrian lake to help with supplies in the county.

It also warned further measures may be needed in the North West if the dry spell continues.

Yorkshire Water said its reservoirs are around 75% full, which is lower than normal for this time of year, and that is has seen people “use more water than they normally would”.

A spokeswoman said it has the ability to move water around its grid network to fulfil demand, but she also asked households to help conserve supplies.

Water UK, which represents water companies, has said it is “always worth using water wisely”, and “especially when people are spending more time at home”.

But it said that there were “no plans for any hosepipe bans this summer”.

“We work closely with all water companies throughout the year, to ensure their drought plans are up to date and activated as needed,” said a spokesman.

“At this time, most companies across the country have appropriate water reserves for this time of year.

“While dry weather since late March has led to a decline in some reservoirs, this is not unusual during a hot, dry spell, and they can recover quickly when the rain returns.”

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Meanwhile, the Yorkshire Dales National Park has issued a fire warning to visitors as the dry spell has left “tinder dry grass and moorland”.

Chief executive David Butterworth said: “Nobody should be lighting fires or barbecues in the countryside and everyone should be taking their litter home to reduce the instances of fire.”

Even more people are expected to head outdoors to enjoy the sunshine after Prime Minister Boris Johnson further loosened lockdown rules, allowing larger groups of people from different households to meet.

Forecasters say conditions are expected to stay “largely, dry, sunny and warm”, with no rain expected in the next week, except across northern and western parts.

The highest temperature recorded so far this year is 28.2C (82.7F) at Santon Downham, Suffolk, on 20 May.

(c) Sky News 2020: UK weather: May set to be driest on record as lockdown sees water firms experience huge demand