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A WATER COMPANY HAS WRITTEN TO 16 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS ACROSS LONDON AND THE SOUTH OF ENGLAND, ASKING THEM TO “BE MINDFUL” ABOUT WATER USAGE DAVID O'DORNAN and ANDY GILPIN Deputy Editor
in Chief 19:21, 31 May 2025 Thames Water has urged customers to “fix leaky loos” to help avoid a hosepipe ban. It comes as a boffin has predicted a hosepipe ban is “certainly possible” after
unusually dry spring weather. The water company has written to 16 million households across London and the south of England, asking them to “be mindful” about water usage. Thames Water told
customers to “avoid wasting water and fix leaky loos and dripping taps as soon as you can”. It claimed such help from punters will allow the company to keep reservoirs full and make sure
there is enough water to withstand dry periods. Five regions across the north of England were moved from “prolonged dry weather” to drought status by the Environment Agency (EA) last
Thursday. Greater Manchester, Merseyside, Cheshire, Cumbria, and Lancashire all have reservoirs and rivers at low levels. Article continues below So far the private utility firm has stopped
short of implementing a hosepipe ban despite Britain facing its driest spring in 69 years. But Dr Jess Neumann, associate professor of hydrology at the University of Reading, fears one is
looming. She said: “Putting the North West into a drought status tells the water company they need to start putting into place their drought action plan. “That will include telling people to
use their water in a more conservative way, to be mindful. “A hosepipe ban is certainly possible, that is the way it is looking.” She added that without “steady, constant rainfall for a
good couple of months”, a hosepipe ban was “on the horizon”. Thames Water has maintained their water reserves are “healthy” but still called for caution when using the service. A spokesman
said: “April 2025 saw significantly less rain than the year before, and we do encourage customers to use water wisely through the spring and summer months. “Our water resources are in a
healthy place ahead of this summer, as rainfall was above average through the winter months. Article continues below “We all have a role to play when it comes to saving water. It is a
precious resource, and we need to value it, which is why we are asking everyone to play their part in reducing use.”