More extremely dry weather and high temperatures are expected later this week
A person holds a garden hose in Leeds as households in Yorkshire have become the first to be hit with a hosepipe ban.(Image: Danny Lawson/PA Wire)
United Utilities has given an update on whether Greater Manchester could be hit with a hosepipe ban as another heatwave beckons.
Yorkshire Water became the first major utility to declare a hosepipe ban on Tuesday, placing restrictions on activities such as watering the garden, cleaning cars and filling paddling pools across the region.
The ban will come into place on Friday and anyone found in breach of the demand could face fines of up to £1,000.
Yorkshire Water said “we hope it won’t come to that” as it urged households to help conserve water during the predicted heatwave.
As the week progresses, temperatures are expected to rise.
Parts of the country are expected to reach up to 30C by Thursday, July 10.
These temperatures will then continue to rise with some parts of the UK hitting figures of 31C on Friday, June 11, and Saturday, June 12, according to Met Office temperature maps.
Now, United Utilities have shared their verdict on whether a hosepipe ban could be enforced in Manchester over the coming days.
While the company told the MEN that they are not currently considering a ban in Greater Manchester, they are still encouraging customers to use water wisely as the dry spell continues.
They added that the reason no hosepipe ban will be implemented is because the rainfall we’ve experienced in the last month has allowed reservoir levels to recover following the driest spring in decades.
A general view of Baitings Reservoir near Ripponden in the West Yorkshire Pennines with low water levels. (Image: Richard McCarthy/PA Wire )
A drought was declared by the Environment Agency across Yorkshire in June, while the North West of England entered drought status in May.
The hosepipe ban in Yorkshire will remain in place until the region has seen “significant rainfall”.
While Yorkshire Water said they will lift the restrictions as “soon as we are able”, the company’s director of water, Dave Kaye, warned that the embargo could last into the winter months.
People can still wash their car and water their gardens using tap water from a bucket or watering can during this period, while the region’s 139,000 businesses will be allowed to use a hosepipe if it is directly related to an essential commercial purpose.