'Worrying' photos show Regent's Park drought damage after fourth summer heatwave

'Worrying' photos show Regent's Park drought damage after fourth summer heatwave A person in London has shared two photos taken just weeks apart in Regent's Park, and the difference appears stark as the capital's flash drought takes hold amid the fourth heatwave of the summer The UK is experiencing its fourth official heatwave of the summer, with temperatures exceeding 34C on multiple occasions. The country's overall heat record was also beaten twice, with the current temperature record for 2026, which is 37.7C set on June 26 in Lingwood, Norfolk. While people and animals have been seen struggling in the heat, there's no doubt that nature is also desperate for rainfall, as half of England and the whole of Wales are officially in drought, with July confirmed as the driest month on record. The areas affected not only included the whole of London, but also East Anglia, Hertfordshire, Thames Valley, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Devon and Cornwall, the West Midlands, and Wessex – covering Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire. This has lead to several parts of the UK being under hosepipe bans, meaning they're not allowed to use their garden hoses to water plants or field - causing severe damage to UK crops and forcing livestock farmers to rely on winter feed reserves. While it may be difficult to truly notice the impact of the drought in your everyday life, especially if you live in the middle of a city, one Reddit user decided to compare two photos taken just weeks apart in London's Regent's Park, and it's left others utterly horrified. "Regent's Park today versus less than two months ago, they wrote on the post as they went on to show the two drastically different photos. Both photos were taken near the Gloucester Gate entry of the park and were merged to show half of the same area to better highlight the difference. While the photo captured on 7th June this year showed lush, vibrant green grass with equally verdant trees surrounding it, the shot from 2nd August told an entirely different story. Rather than green grass, it had turned a parched brown, while the surrounding trees and bushes were drooping from the lack of water and rainfall. "Damn, we really need a good splash of rain, to help our natural environment," one person said in the comment section. Someone added: "We were there at the open air theatre yesterday. Huge parts of it aren't even dry grass anymore, it's all been worn away and now it's just dust." "I miss the rain," another said, to which the poster replied: "Never thought we'd be saying that in London." UK's record-breaking summer as drought announced A "flash drought" was declared on July 29 for the whole of London due to the very low rainfall and high temperatures as we are in the middle of the fourth heatwave of the year, the Environment Agency revealed. The summer of heatwaves first started on 22 May and saw the country's record for the hottest May day broken on consecutive days, forming the western extent of a broader sequence of extreme heat events across Western and Central Europe. On 25 May, a temperature of 34.8C was recorded at Kew Gardens in London, surpassing the previous record of 32.8C, set in 1922. This was broken again when 35.1C was recorded in the same location the following day. Other records which were broken during the May heatwave included the hottest May day in Guernsey, Jersey, and Wales, as well as the UK's highest May daily minimum temperature The second heatwave started on 19 June and saw more records broken, including that for the UK's hottest June day when 37.7C was recorded in Lingwood, Norfolk, on 26 June, which marked the fifth-hottest day recorded in UK history. A third heatwave began on 4 July, with temperatures peaking at 35.5C in Wisley, Surrey, on 9 July. A fourth heatwave began on 28 July, two days after the third heatwave ended, which comes as the Environmental Agency announced a drought. It's also triggered Amber UKHSA heat-health alerts and heightened wildfire risks. Meanwhile UK weather maps show a four-day heatwave could be right around the corner. The Met Office suggest yet another heatwave will follow in just a few days’ time.