William Hill make Surrey the 6/4 favourite to be the next county to implement a hosepipe ban in the UK. A period of very dry weather has seen Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Sussex and Kent impose restrictions on water usage and the leading bookmaker makes Surrey the favourite to be the next county to follow suit ahead of Dorset at 2/1, and Devon at 3/1.
Meanwhile, Hills expect the mercury to continue to rise with the hottest day in August odds-on at 4/7 to be between 35 and 39.9C. It’s 8/1 for the hottest day of 2022 to be recorded this month, while William Hill are 12/1 that a temperature of 40C is recorded this week.
William Hill spokesman, Tony Kenny, said: “Little to no rain looks likely for at least another couple of weeks and further hosepipe bans are surely on the cards. We make Surrey the 6/4 favourite to be the next county to announce a ban on water usage with Dorset next in line at 2/1 and Devon 3/1.
“As well as the dry weather, it’s been very hot and that doesn’t look like changing with our traders going 8/1 that the hottest day of 2022 comes during the month of August.”
Temperatures are set to rise to the mid 30s in parts of southern England as high pressure brings more hot, dry weather, following months of low rainfall which have left the country facing the spectre of drought. The conditions have left the countryside, as well as urban parks and gardens, extremely dry, raising the risk of more devastating wildfires, with rivers, groundwater and reservoirs at low levels.
Two water companies have already announced hosepipe bans and others have warned they may need to follow suit – and there does not appear to be any immediate let-up in the dry, hot weather for southern parts of the country. Essex County Fire and Rescue Service is urging people not to light barbecues or bonfires, or let off fireworks or sky lanterns, after a large fire which damaged gardens, sheds and trees was started by a chiminea.
The Met Office is forecasting another week of sweltering weather for some parts – although the UK is not expected to see the record-breaking temperatures of July’s heatwave, where thermometers topped 40C for the first time.
Met Office spokesperson Grahame Madge said: “We’re expecting the heat to build toward the end of the week, and expecting temperatures of 34C or 35C across parts of southern England. After that the heatwave will start to subside.”
He said the heat was caused by an area of low pressure building from the west, but it would be slipping away eastwards by the end of this week, bringing fresher conditions. But it was not yet clear from the forecasts whether there would be any “meaningful” rain to relieve dry areas next week, he said.
Low rainfall in July has left river flows in central, southern and eastern England, and eastern Scotland, below normal – with many seeing “exceptionally” low levels of water flowing in them, the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UKCEH) said.
But rain in north west Britain in the last week or so has meant river flows are in the normal range or above normal, or even exceptionally high in the case of Cumbria.
Lucy Barker, a hydrological analyst at UKCEH, said: “Current forecasts suggest that dry and warm weather will continue for southern Britain through the first half of August, and hydrological forecasts suggest below normal river flows in southern Britain are likely to persist over the next few months, with exceptionally low flows likely in many catchments.
“Groundwater levels and reservoir stocks are likely to continue to decline in these areas.
“We would expect to see continued impacts on agriculture and the environment in addition to further pressures on water supplies, with the possibility of further restrictions.”
William Hill – Specials – Weather
Next county to implement a hosepipe ban:
Surrey |
6/4 |
Dorset |
2/1 |
Devon |
3/1 |
Cornwall |
7/2 |
London |
4/1 |
Lancashire |
6/1 |
Yorkshire |
7/1 |
