The daily water shut-off came into effect last Tuesday (Jan 28), with a notice posted that same day. (See post here.)
“Cherng Talay Municipality has to shut off water from 10pm to 5am in all areas of Cherng Talay Municipality because there is a not enough water.
“At this stage we do not know when normal water supply will be resumed. In the end we just have to wait for the rain to return [in late April to May],” Tripoom Musikkarat, supervisor of the water production division at Cherng Talay Municipality, told The Phuket News today (Feb 3).
“Cherng Talay Municipality is currently buying water from a private company in Soi Cherng Talay 1, which we estimate is providing enough water for people to use to get by.
“However, this company can provide water for only about two months, so we must look for other private companies as well just in case,” Mr Tripoom said.
“If people need to use water between 10pm and 5am, we suggest they keep their own reserves in the house,” he noted.
Any persons living in the Cherng Talay Municipality area in need of emergency water supply are urged to call the municipality at 076-324440 ext 212, Mr Tripoom added.
The nightly water shut off in Cherng Talay follows Phuket City Municipality already reducing the water pressure to Phuket Town residents in the hope of conserving water (see story here), after Phuket Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) Chief Graisorn Mahamad last month announced a slew of measures to conserve what little water supplies Phuket has in the hope of staving off serious water shortages across the island.
Mr Graisorn also delivered the dire message, “We don’t have enough water to produce in 2020 because the water levels at the three main reservoirs – Bang Wad, Bang Neow Dum and Khlong Kratha reservoirs – are so low” and confirmed that mains water pressure supplying residents in Wichit and Patong had already been reduced. (See story here.)
* NOTE: Cherng Talay Municipality administers Cherng Talay Town and the surrounding areas only, not the beach areas, which are administered by Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organisation (OrBorTor).