A man shelters under a copy of the Financial Times newspaper as he runs through a heavy rain shower outside the Bank of England in London. Sodden fields. Puddles. Floods. This is what drought looks like in Britain. Last month, water authorities banned 20 million homeowners from using hoses to water their lawns or wash their cars, saying two of the driest winters on record had plunged much of Britain into drought. Since then, the rain has hardly let up.By JILL LAWLESS
LONDON – Sodden fields. Deep puddles. Flash floods. This is what drought looks like in Britain.
Last month, water authorities banned 20 million U.K. homeowners from using hoses to water their lawns or wash their cars, saying two exceptionally dry winters had plunged much of Britain into drought.
Since then, the rain has hardly let up. Official figures show that April was both cooler than average and the wettest in a century, leaving a trail of flooded properties, canceled events and grumpy residents.
But officials insist the drought and the watering ban remain – to the bafflement of many Britons.