WATER refilling stations in the city are starting to experience a rise in demand; but the resulting scarcity of water due to the heat wave is hindering them from enjoying what should have been a boost in sales.
“Our water station is really suffering now because we have to stop processing every thirty minutes before we resume. This amounts to several delays in our deliveries,” said the owner of a water refilling station who asked to remain anonymous.
He said despite the struggle, they try to cater to all their customers and deliver drinking water within the day.
For his part, Jenie Nacion, who works at 4A’s Water Lab, said their sales have reached unprecedented numbers due to the extremely hot weather.
He said from selling an average of 100 gallons a day, sales breached the 300 mark on Thursday, April 4, 2024.
“Our sales exceeded 300 gallons especially since it’s now really very hot and people always look for water to drink. At times, we had to turn down customers because we no longer had water to give,” Nacion said in Cebuano.
Reliant on MCWD
Most of the water refilling stations located in Metro Cebu rely on the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) for their supply.
Nacion expressed frustration over their daily struggle with water supply from MCWD saying the water district typically starts to provide water at 4 a.m. and then stops at 6 a.m. leaving a mere two-hour window for usage.
“Days like this, we have no more water in the tank. The MCWD runs supply only from 4-6 a.m., and then we don’t know when they’re going to release water again. There’s no prior notice on the water service interruptions,” he said.
Water scarcity
The water scarcity experienced in many parts of the country has had ripple effects on communities whose people are left struggling for day-to-day access to water.
“When the temperatures started to soar, our water supply also started to dwindle. Some barangays are even in a sorrier state than us because their water is very limited,” said Jories Tagalog, a resident of Barangay Kamagayan, Cebu City.
He said since water flows from their faucets only at dawn, they are forced to store up water in huge barrels for use during the day.
The water shortage in the city is attributed to drought induced by the El Niño phenomenon. / Joshua Usigan and Ma. Anna Primero, BiPSU Interns