UK Weather: Britain Lurches From Drought To Flash Floods

Downpours across the country follow weeks of intense heatwaves – but hosepipe bans will still be in place.
Stoke Newington, London, during a rain storm on Wednesday.
Stoke Newington, London, during a rain storm on Wednesday.
@TomHuddleston_ via PA Media

After the drought, the floods.

Parts of the UK have faced two days of torrential rain, which follows weeks of hot weather and sunshine, with a thunderstorm warning covering most of the south east of England, including parts of London, in place.

While the weather extremes may be disconcerting, one invariably leads to another. With land left parched, it will take heavy rain much longer to be absorbed into the ground – leading to the spate of flash floods being recorded on social media.

And the downpours will not magically solve the country’s drought problem. The Environment Agency has said it will take weeks of rain to replenish water sources and end the drought.

Footage and photos showed torrential rain and floodwater sweeping through towns across the UK.

LONDON: A car negotiates a flooded section of road, as torrential rain and thunderstorms hit the country.
LONDON: A car negotiates a flooded section of road, as torrential rain and thunderstorms hit the country.
Leon Neal via Getty Images
PERTH: Network Rail Scotland handout photo of flooding at Perth station following heavy rain.
PERTH: Network Rail Scotland handout photo of flooding at Perth station following heavy rain.
Network Rail Scotland via PA Media
LONDON: A woman sat on a park bench with an umbrella shelters from the rain near Blackfriars in London.
LONDON: A woman sat on a park bench with an umbrella shelters from the rain near Blackfriars in London.
Yui Mok via PA Wire/PA Images
NEWQUAY: Handout photo taken with permission from the Twitter feed of @opheliaspromise of flooding on Marcus Hill in Newquay.
NEWQUAY: Handout photo taken with permission from the Twitter feed of @opheliaspromise of flooding on Marcus Hill in Newquay.
@opheliaspromise via PA Media
LOUGHBOROUGH: Handout photo taken with permission from the Twitter feed of @tinaonions of flooding in Morrisons car park in Loughborough.
LOUGHBOROUGH: Handout photo taken with permission from the Twitter feed of @tinaonions of flooding in Morrisons car park in Loughborough.
Sileby Volunteer Flood Wardens via PA Wire/PA Images
PORT TALBOT: Handout photo taken with permission from the Twitter feed of @CloudsHillBirds of flooding in Port Talbot, Wales.
PORT TALBOT: Handout photo taken with permission from the Twitter feed of @CloudsHillBirds of flooding in Port Talbot, Wales.
Luke Phillips via PA Wire/PA Images

The Met Office issued an amber thunderstorm warning from 11am until 10pm on Wednesday, meaning people should expect flooding and disruption.

The warning says: “Fast flowing or deep floodwater is likely, causing danger to life.”

Flooding is likely to affect homes and businesses “quickly”, as 30mm to 50mm of rain could fall in just an hour, while a few places may see more than 100mm in a few hours.

Forecasters say this could lead to train and bus cancellations amid difficult driving conditions, power cuts and communities becoming cut off from roads.

Lightning, hail and strong winds will also lash areas included in the warning, which spreads across Suffolk, Kent, Surrey and West Sussex.

The images of floods emerging are in stark contrast to last week, when England’s green pastures had been turned yellow and brown.

Greenwich Park, London, on Sunday August 14, 2022
Greenwich Park, London, on Sunday August 14, 2022
Dominic Lipinski via PA Wire/PA Images
Greenwich Park, London, on Wednesday August 17, 2022.
Greenwich Park, London, on Wednesday August 17, 2022.
Yui Mok via PA Wire/PA Images

A drought was officially declared across most of England following the driest July for 50 years and the driest first half of the year since 1976.

Thames Water, which supplies 15 million people, is putting a hosepipe ban in place next week, saying water levels in its reservoirs were “much lower than usual”.

It joins Welsh Water, Southern Water and South East Water in implementing a hosepipe ban.

South West Water and Yorkshire Water will follow suit on August 23 and 26 respectively – meaning more than 29.4 million customers across the UK will be prohibited from using hosepipes by the end of next week.

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