By Christopher Haraden

As record heat settled into the area this week, the Weir River Water System experienced a “drastic drop” in the water level in its Turkey Hill storage tank, prompting a systemwide ban on all outdoor watering and nonessential use of water.

On Tuesday, the water company, which serves customers in Hull, Hingham, and parts of Cohasset, issued an “emergency Level 2 water ban” to curtail usage and rebuild capacity in its tank.

“Effective immediately, the Weir River Water System will be instituting a Level 2 water ban. This means absolutely no outdoor watering and nonessential watering until further notice,” the company said in a statement to customers on Tuesday, as the mercury hit 102 degrees in Boston for the first time ever in the month of June. Some South Shore communities also reported triple-digit temperatures, although most thermometers in Hull registered in the high 90s at the peak of the day’s heat.

The company described nonessential outdoor usage as irrigation by automatic sprinklers or soaker hoses, the washing of vehicles, exterior building surfaces, parking lots, driveways, and sidewalks, and the filling swimming pools. WRWS said the mandatory ban was necessary because previous requests for conservation were not followed.

“The WRWS is working to increase water supply as a result of increased demand in the system,” the company reported in a 6 p.m. update on Tuesday. “Over the last 12 hours we have improved the levels in our storage tanks at a rate of one foot per hour. Pressure throughout the system has returned to normal and will continue to improve overnight as long as customers adhere to the Level 2 water ban. As a result, customers may notice fluctuations in water pressure and some temporary discoloration from naturally occurring sediments stirred up within the mains.”

Violators of the water ban face fines for the first and second offenses, and could have their water service shut off if violations continue.

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