One of the UK’s largest water companies has urged customers to conserve water as emergency deliveries are made during the ongoing heatwave. Severn Trent reported that homes in Shropshire, Staffordshire and Derbyshire had experienced temporary outages due to demand outstripping supply across its network.
United Utilities warned it could introduce a hosepipe ban on Monday unless water usage is cut by at least 5%. The North West supplier has doubled extra water pumped into the system to 500 million litres, though daily consumption currently stands at 2.2 billion litres. Tips from suppliers include swapping baths for showers and avoiding car washing.
Severn Trent set up bottled water collection points in several areas after supplies were disrupted. The firm, which serves 4.3 million customers from Rutland to Powys, sent trucks to pump water directly into the network and added an extra 300 million litres on Wednesday. Reservoir levels remain plentiful, and the company does not foresee a hosepipe ban in the coming weeks.
Other suppliers have taken similar steps. SES Water distributed a record 238 million litres on Sunday, while Southern Water asked customers to avoid washing cars until the weather cools. In Northern Ireland, a hosepipe ban is set for this weekend.
The heat has also led to social tensions: in Birmingham, homeless charities reported fights over bottled water. A primary school in Cheshire closed early due to water supply issues, and the Environment Agency rescued around 130 trout and salmon from a depleted river in Herefordshire.
Temperatures have reached 30.6C this week, with the hot weather expected to continue into next week. The UK is experiencing its hottest June in 40 years, intensifying pressure on water resources.
