Philippine water shortage hits more than 6 million people in and around nation’s capital

Water supplies will be cut for at least six hours a day for more than a million households until the rainy season fills dams and reservoirs in May or June

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A couple carries empty containers looking for places to collect water in Mandaluyong, metropolitan Manila. Photo: AP

Published: 11:42pm, 14 Mar 2019Updated: 9:03am, 15 Mar 2019

More than 6 million people have been affected by a water shortage in large areas of the Philippine capital and a nearby province, with long queues forming for rationed water, and businesses and some hospitals struggling to cope after taps ran dry.

A spokesman for Manila Water Company, Jeric Sevilla, said on Thursday that water supplies will be cut for at least six hours a day for an estimated 6.8 million people in more than a million households until the rainy season fills dams and reservoirs in May or June.

A man sits beside rows of buckets as he waits for water trucks in Manila on Thursday. Photo: AP

The company, one of two government-authorised water suppliers in the densely populated Manila metropolis and nearby Rizal province, said a spike in demand and reduced water levels in a dam and smaller reservoirs in the sweltering summer are the culprit, exacerbated by El Nino weather conditions.

Manila Water, which supplies water to the eastern half of the capital, initially tried to cope with the limited supply by reducing pressure but it did not work since some communities in hilly areas complained of not getting water for long hours. The company then decided to schedule water supply interruptions starting on Thursday, Sevilla said.

“The concept is for everybody to share the burden,” he said by phone. “Nobody wants this to happen. The welfare of our customers is foremost in our mind and we’re taking steps to mitigate the situation.”