House byline

Fiona MacLeod

Environment correspondent

Fiona MacLeod is a house byline for InfoHandle’s Environment desk.

5 stories

Residents queue with empty shopping baskets outside a suburban supermarket while a Thames Water van is parked on a wet residential street

Thames Water Outage Cuts Taps Across Five Boroughs and Surrey Postcodes

A burst main left homes and schools without water from Wimbledon to Esher on Monday morning; engineers located the leak but warned repairs in congested streets could take hours.

Fiona MacLeod Sep 28, 2026United Kingdom

Muddy river weir with brown foam at a concrete overflow channel on an overcast day, damp towpath reeds and worn stone, no logos or readable text

Environment

Thames Water Faces Ofwat Fine Proposal After Sewage Overflow Data Exceeds Permit Limits

Ofwat sent Thames Water a draft enforcement package proposing a nine-figure penalty after annual storm-overflow returns showed hundreds of permit breaches across London and the Thames Valley, with customers facing bill uncertainty while investors weigh a special administration path.

Fiona MacLeod Sep 23, 2026United Kingdom

Temporary chest-high fencing around a shallow brine pool in a Cheshire pasture with lapwings circling overhead and white salt crust on mud, grey September sky, no logos or readable text

Environment

Wildlife Trusts Fence Cheshire Salt Mine Brine Leak Field for Wading Birds

Cheshire Wildlife Trust fenced a brine-saturated field beside a historic salt mine after wading birds began nesting in contaminated runoff, working with the Environment Agency on pumping tests.

Fiona MacLeod Sep 21, 2026United Kingdom

Seaside hotel facade on Marine Parade with fire hoses coiled on wet pavement, scorch marks on lower brickwork, overcast Channel sky, cordon tape blurred and unreadable, no logos

Environment

Folkestone Evacuates 90 Residents After Suspicious Grand Burstin Hotel Blaze Raises Collapse Fears

Folkestone and Hythe District Council moved 90 people out of Pavilion Court on Sunday after safety inspectors warned the basement fire at the neighboring Grand Burstin Hotel may have weakened the structure; Kent Police are treating the blaze as suspicious.

Fiona MacLeod Sep 20, 2026United Kingdom

Essex estuary mudflat at low tide with sparse green saltmarsh shoots and a worker in waterproof trousers carrying a plastic seed bucket, grey overcast sky, no logos or readable text.

Environment

RSPB Restocks Saltmarsh Seeds on Essex Coast After Storm Surge Erosion

RSPB teams reseeded Essex saltmarsh after winter storm surge stripped pioneer vegetation on Wallasea and adjacent flats, racing the autumn window before high tides return on the Thames estuary.

Fiona MacLeod Sep 19, 2026United Kingdom