Severe drought in eastern Cuba leads to water usage restrictions

Severe drought in eastern Cuba leads to water usage restrictions

The water rationing measures are expected to remain in place through
October in response to the intense and persistent drought that has
affected almost a million people throughout the island for months.
BY NANCY SAN MARTIN
staff@InCubaToday.com

A severe drought in eastern Cuba has prompted water delivery service for
some 70,000 residents in the Santiago de Cuba province, government
officials told local media.

The potable water shipments are being delivered via tanker trucks to
those in need while water service has been reduced or delayed for the
rest of the provincial population, officials with the National Water
Resources Institute, or INRH, said.

The water rationing measures are expected to remain in place though
October in response to the intense and persistent drought that has
affected almost a million people throughout the island for months.

According to INRH, about 260 water supply sources have been fully or
partially affected across Cuba, but the hardest hit is Santiago de Cuba.

Among the measures put in place to reduce water scarcity are to bypass
conduits and impose stringent leak control to ameliorate the problem of
water wastage from the domestic and agricultural distribution networks.

Cuban weather forecasters have said that rainfall in May is expected to
be "favorable." Still, officials warned of the importance of ensuring
"rational" water usage and "saving" water.

Even with the water measures in place, "sustained and sufficient"
rainfall will be needed to reverse the problem of low water levels in
Cuba's reservoirs, authorities said.

The latest reports released by the INRH indicate that the reservoirs are
at about 47 percent capacity, below the historic average for this time
of year.

Source: Severe drought in eastern Cuba leads to water usage restrictions
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