Fresh photographs taken at Hereford's Old Bridge show just how low the River Wye has fallen, with parts of the riverbed now visible as drought conditions continue across Herefordshire and Wales.
Latest Environment Agency figures show river levels remain exceptionally low at monitoring stations along the Wye, including a reading of 0m at Old Bridge in Hereford and 0m at Ross-on-Wye.
Elsewhere, levels were recorded at 0.211m at Hay-on-Wye, 0.08m at Bredwardine, 0.10m at Belmont, and 0.32m at Mordiford.
The pictures from Old Bridge highlight the impact of the prolonged dry spell, with exposed gravel and riverbed visible in areas usually covered by water.
However, the Environment Agency said a reading of zero metres does not mean the river has dried up.
The agency explained that some gauges are measured from fixed reference points which can be at, or very close to, the riverbed, meaning a 0m reading can be recorded while water is still flowing through the channel.
The latest figures come as Herefordshire and the wider West Midlands enter a third week under official drought status.
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Natural Resources Wales has also now declared a drought across the whole of Wales after months of dry weather and exceptionally low rainfall.
The continuing dry conditions are affecting both river flows and reservoir storage across the region.
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Earlier this week, figures showed water levels at the Elan Valley reservoirs, which feed into the River Wye system, had fallen to just over 62 per cent of total capacity.
While the reservoirs were originally built to supply Birmingham, they also contribute flows into the Wye upstream of Hereford, where water is abstracted for drinking water treatment.
Environmental agencies on both sides of the border have increased monitoring of rivers and water resources during the drought.
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