Drought declared in Yorkshire

Drought has been declared in Yorkshire due to a lack of spring and summer rainfall, the Environment Agency has said.

There are low water levels in reservoirs and rivers in many parts of Yorkshire despite recent rainfall, the agency added.

"Prolonged dry weather" status for the region was declared at the end of July which has now been upgraded to "drought".

It joins all of central, southern and eastern England in drought status, while the North East and North West remain in prolonged dry weather.

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Area Environment Manager for the Environment Agency in Yorkshire, Vicki Townend, said: "The Yorkshire area has had the fifth driest April to September on record.

"This ongoing lack of rainfall means the flow in rivers and groundwater levels in certain parts of our area are very low and have now reached our trigger for declaring a drought.

"Even if we receive a few weeks of rain, we cannot quickly reverse the effects of the lack of rainfall during a very dry spring and summer."

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(c) Sky News 2026: Drought declared in Yorkshire