Heavy rain not enough to end hosepipe ban in Brighton and Hove

Recent rainfall and the downpours forecast for the coming week will not be enough for Southern Water to lift the hosepipe ban.

Brighton and Hove has had one of its wettest months in recent memory since the government formally declared a drought at the start of April.

And tomorrow (Wednesday 25 April) looks like being one of the wettest days yet, with almost an inch of rain forecast – nearly as much as a typical fortnight in April.

A Southern Water spokesman said: “We need a considerable amount of rain over the coming months to help replenish our sources and the restrictions are likely to continue throughout the summer and possibly into the winter.

“The recent rainfall has helped to top up our reservoirs but because the ground is extremely hard much of the rain becomes run-off and will top up reservoirs and rivers but will not recharge the aquifers.”

Brighton and Hove’s water supply is drawn exclusively from aquifers rather than rivers or reservoirs.

In a typical April the average rainfall for the area is just over 2in although it is traditionally one of the driest months of the year.

Average monthly rainfall varies from about 1.75in for July to just over 3in for January and December.

Almost 1in is expected tomorrow and the coming week is expected to bring just over 2in – the same as a typical April.

And almost 2in has fallen in the past week with just over 1in in the previous week.

However, smaller amounts of rain over a sustained spell would be more likely to ease the need for drought restrictions rather than torrential downpours.