IT had been a month since Oliver Tubelar started spending P100 a day to fill 10 containers of water at a refilling station in Sitio Quintolimbo, Barangay Capitol Site in Cebu City.
Due to the low water pressure that dries up faucets in his household, Tubelar said he had to schedule chores like laundry and washing dishes to save on water and money.
“I have to wash dishes only at night, all the dishes we use for breakfast, lunch, and dinner is washed at the same time. Sometimes, I wash them the following day. Laundry is also scheduled once a week only and we have to use our clothes more than once first before throwing them to the laundry basket,” Tubelar said in Cebuano.
He is one of many residents affected by the low water supply in the area.
Nearly all homes in Sitio Quintolimbo have water containers outside their homes as they wait for the water pressure to return to normal so they could stock up on water.
Tubelar said sometimes, they experience very low water pressure at 3 a.m. to 5 a.m. for twice a week. They usually collect water at 5-10 gallons. But most of the time there is no water at all.
In Sitio Lower Ponce, residents consider themselves fortunate if they can have water for two hours. The place is a little lower compared to Sitio Quintolimbo.
A resident of the area, Anne Del Rosario, said they have water at 3 a.m. to 5 a.m. but unlike Sitio Quintolimbo, the water pressure in Lower Ponce is greater so residents can collect up to 20 gallons in two hours.
Anne said due to the low water supply, she had to stop selling ice water at her home.
Yet another resident, Nicanor Panonce, said cleaning their home is also hard with no water.
He said his family had to take turns to bathe just to save on water. “It’s hard to stay clean without water,” Panonce said.
The Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) earlier advised its customers in the Metro Cebu area to ration water due to the onset of the summer season which reduces the ground water sources of the province.