Drought declared in the Midlands

Severn Trent Water said they experienced record levels of demand just last week.

The National Drought Group met today (15 July) and a drought was declared in the West and East Midlands.

The region joins the north-west and Yorkshire, which officially declared a drought last month.

A decision to declare a drought is made based on reservoir levels, river flows, groundwater levels, the dryness of soils, environmental incidents, and the position of water resources, along with consideration of long-term weather forecasts.

A Severn Trent spokesperson said: “Severn Trent hasn’t had a hosepipe ban for over 30 years because we know just how important it is for our customers. It’s why we have thousands of employees working around the clock right now to keep the water flowing. We’re finding and fixing more leaks than ever before, investing record amounts in new pipes, and upgrading and developing new treatment works, adding hundreds of millions of litres of drinking water into our network. So, whilst we want to reassure our customers that we’re doing everything we can to keep the water flowing, we can’t escape how hot and dry it is, and how little rainfall we’ve had this year. We experienced record levels of demand just last week and that’s why, as well as doing everything we can, we’re also asking our customers to be even more mindful of their water usage during this hot spell.”