This year saw the driest June on record with the UK hit by scorching temperatures and almost no rainfall.
Reservoir levels across the UK have begun to drop, some worryingly.
In the northwest of England, seven million people face a hosepipe ban due to be implemented on August 5.
This is the second hosepipe ban this summer after Northern Ireland suffered restrictions earlier this month.
Is there a drought?
The UK is not officially in a drought right now.
The Met Office defines a drought as a prolonged period of “several months or even years” with insufficient rainfall.
However, it adds that “short-term droughts, such as those experienced in the UK, can also be caused when high pressure systems persist.”
It adds that if water levels drop, it is the responsibility of the Met Office, the Environment Agency, and water companies to take action to protect the public.
One part of water companies drought plans is hosepipe or sprinkler bans.
UK weather: The dried up bed of Wayoh Reservoir near Bolton
United Utilities (UU), the water company implementing the bans in the North, said they are trying to take care to “prevent the need for restrictions later in the year.”
UU’s last reservoir level count was taken on July 15, and shows levels of some of their reservoirs are more than 40 percent lower than they were at this time last year.
West Cumbria was at 99.1 percent in June last year and is 98.5 percent full on average.
On July 15, it was at just 52.8 percent.
Will water run out if it doesn't rain?
Technically, water could run out, like we’ve seen in Cape Town, South Africa, this year.
However the chances of this in the UK are very small.
The Government implemented a more robust drought plan after the 1976 heatwave which saw reservoirs all but dry up.
And while this heatwave might feel neverending, the jet stream which usually hovers over the UK is likely to return from its holiday up north sooner or later.
Of course, there are a lot of things the public need to do to help the situation as well, whether you’re in a hosepipe ban area or not.
Here are some easy tips to save water:
- Don't run taps to rinse washing up or while brushing your teeth, etc
- Keep a jug of water in the fridge rather than wait for the tap to run cold.
- Wash your car with a sponge and bucket rather than a hosepipe.
- Water your garden with a watering can rather than a hosepipe.
- Remember than lawns bounce back - don’t worry if it turns brown. Look at the park!
- Have a quick shower rather than bath.
- Only do laundry when you have a full load
- Get on the phone to your local water company as much as you can - water pipe leakages amount for 22 percent of daily water use across the UK, and companies have the power to fix them.