In breathtaking aerial photographs of the royal estate, the Queen’s Sandringham Estate appears parched.
The estate, which includes the Queen’s house at its centre, is surrounded by 8,000 hectares (almost 20,000 acres) of forests and heaths that have been burnt by the heatwave, much like much of the rest of Britain.
Although there isn’t currently a hosepipe ban in force in Norfolk, where the country retreat is situated, Sandringham has obviously chosen to conserve water by allowing its fields to dry out.
However, the images demonstrate that some parts, such as the lengthy garden to the north of the house and the rows of hedges enclosing the entry, appear to have received watering.
Pictures of the estate from just two months ago show the grounds to be lush and green, but after Norfolk saw the driest July on record, the difference is startling.
The Queen is now on vacation at Balmoral in Scotland, not at her Norfolk home, where temperatures are expected to hit a very pleasant 23C today.
The Sandringham staff asked guests to help keep the estate safe during the hot weather earlier this week on Instagram.
The Royal Parkland is still extremely dry despite the hot weather, they claimed.
“When visiting, please be on the lookout for fires and report them right away. We also recommend that guests download the “what3words” app to help them with directions.
Please refrain from grilling and take all trash home to help lower the risk.
A sizable “tinderbox” fire was fought by around 50 firemen on Tuesday in an effort to keep it from spreading to the Queen’s estate in Norfolk.
In the event of a fire on the royal estate, Sandringham is thought to have its own fire engine.
The continuous dry weather and the temperature that set a record last month have dried out soils, depleted rivers, reservoirs, and aquifers, which has had an adverse effect on agriculture, water supplies, and wildlife as well as increased the risk of wildfires.
Yesterday, fires started in a variety of places, including London, Essex, Gloucestershire, Surrey, and Cheshire.
The first week of August saw an eight-fold increase in grass, trash, and open land fires, according to the London Fire Brigade’s control room, from 42 to 340.
The Wildlife Trusts have advocated for an England-wide hosepipe ban to safeguard nature and rivers, and four water providers in England and Wales have either implemented hosepipe bans or indicated that they plan to do so.
The water provider in Norfolk, Anglian Water, stated that no restriction on hosepipes is currently in the works.
According to a spokesman, “We have no hosepipe bans currently in effect across our region and we’re working hard to keep it that way,” but added that “things can change quickly” and that “the forecast for this month remains dry and warm.”
The spokesman also noted that “we’re watching river levels very closely right now.”