Heavy rain on dry ground may cause UK floods but will not reverse drought

‘First meaningful rain for a long time’ is forecast but water firms continue to ask customers to restrict use Floods and drought could hit the UK at the same time this week, with heavy rain forecast to fall on hard, parched soil. While some parts of the UK will have the “first meaningful rain for a long time” in the coming days, it will not reverse widespread drought conditions that have put pressure on wildlife, farmers, firefighters and water resources. On Tuesday, South East Water told customers in Kent to use water only for “essential” purposes, after taps ran dry on Monday for around 8,000 customers. Wessex Water imposed the UK’s latest hosepipe ban, covering 1.4m customers in Bath, Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire. The summer’s fifth climate crisis-driven heatwave will be followed by wetter and cooler weather that is much closer to the usual conditions for the time of the year, according to the Met Office. Its deputy chief forecaster, Mike Silverstone, said showers were expected on Tuesday in the north of the country, particularly in the north-west, and that another area of rain would move into the south-west by the evening. This would then probably spread east across the south

Aug 18, 2026 → Aug 28, 2026