Tacloban water shortage

[Lee]

For 4 months now there has been an acute water shortage in T Town depending on where you live. In the past our cistern would top off with city water almost every night which would easily get us the through the next day or two. Presently , we haven't had any water for the last 4 days and have relied on a handpump for weeks to meet most of our water needs.

This is what the mayor said about this back in May.
https://www.philstar.com/nation/2023/05/20/2267542/tacloban-facing-water-crisis
 

Quote

 

Tacloban City, Philippines — Mayor Alfred Romualdez has declared a water crisis in this city, citing the worsening water supply problem.
Romualdez blamed the water shortage on illegal connections.

“I’ve conveyed my disappointment. I am frustrated. I told Prime Water and LMWD (Leyte Metropolitan Water District) that there’s a report from engineers that we are losing 50 percent of our water supply due to illegal connections,” he told a press conference yesterday, referring to water utility companies servicing the city.

Romualdez said he asked Prime Water and LMWD to cut the illegal connections and file charges against the culprits.

He gave the water utility companies until the end of the month (May) to address the water shortage in the city.

 

 

It's Sept now and nothing has changed. Here is what the company that supplies the city with water has to say on the subject.

 

Primewater is blaming El Nino for the water shortage. I have been here during previous El Ninos and have never seen even a hint of a shortage. Would guess that incompetence and/or greed is causing this.

Yesterday, we went to the water dept and noted that there was a line of tanker trucks filling up and leaving. The guard told us that many people/businesses are having water delivered to their property (for a fee) to fill their cisterns/tanks. Have to wonder if all of this water stayed in the system, how many more families would get there share of water like they did in the past.

Also noted that local car washes and clothing washing businesses have continue business unabated.

Plumbers have recommended that we install a vacuum pump to assist with getting water into our cistern. Does anyone have any experience with this? Would like to hear the pros and cons. What connections would have to be made to my existing system? Thanks.

[hk blues]

5 hours ago, Lee said:

For 4 months now there has been an acute water shortage in T Town depending on where you live. In the past our cistern would top off with city water almost every night which would easily get us the through the next day or two. Presently , we haven't had any water for the last 4 days and have relied on a handpump for weeks to meet most of our water needs.

This is what the mayor said about this back in May.
https://www.philstar.com/nation/2023/05/20/2267542/tacloban-facing-water-crisis
 

 

It's Sept now and nothing has changed. Here is what the company that supplies the city with water has to say on the subject.

 

Primewater is blaming El Nino for the water shortage. I have been here during previous El Ninos and have never seen even a hint of a shortage. Would guess that incompetence and/or greed is causing this.

Yesterday, we went to the water dept and noted that there was a line of tanker trucks filling up and leaving. The guard told us that many people/businesses are having water delivered to their property (for a fee) to fill their cisterns/tanks. Have to wonder if all of this water stayed in the system, how many more families would get there share of water like they did in the past.

Also noted that local car washes and clothing washing businesses have continue business unabated.

Plumbers have recommended that we install a vacuum pump to assist with getting water into our cistern. Does anyone have any experience with this? Would like to hear the pros and cons. What connections would have to be made to my existing system? Thanks.

Are you on a tank or mainline water supply? If mainline regardless of anything else you might end up with some mighty pissed neighbours as you're effectively 'stealing' water from everyone else in the line.  Normally this wouldn't be an issue but when there is a shortage, and weak flow is a problem in general, it can become one quickly.  Our sub-division have banned them but there have been a few who ignore the ban and have installed them but it often results in a spat. 

[Lee]

27 minutes ago, hk blues said:

Are you on a tank or mainline water supply?

We are on a main line system and hesitate to "steal" water from anyone. Paying for a tanker truck to deliver water also seems like "stealing" since the water that we would receive could have been parceled out to several other families.

Wife and I are of the age though, that its tough to run back and forth across the yard with buckets of water several times a day. We just got got a helper to do this work but expect her to last only a few weeks as per the norm.

I'm basically looking for ideas right now.

[hk blues]

9 minutes ago, Lee said:

We are on a main line system and hesitate to "steal" water from anyone. Paying for a tanker truck to deliver water also seems like "stealing" since the water that we would receive could have been parceled out to several other families.

Wife and I are of the age though, that its tough to run back and forth across the yard with buckets of water several times a day. We just got got a helper to do this work but expect her to last only a few weeks as per the norm.

I'm basically looking for ideas right now.

Yes, but with a pump your are 'stealing' from your direct neighbours and they'll know it- by buying a tanker you are perhaps 'stealing' but who from - nobody can say so it's less contentious.  I'm not saying it's wrong to install a pump and look after your own needs first, just that it can become a problem with neighbours.  

Personally, I'd go for the tanker as you can turn on and off the service whenever you like, once you've installed the pump it's another job to uninstall it. 

[Possum]

Putting a pump, vacuum or otherwise on the line to your storage tank is not a good idea. Previously lived in a subdivision with the same problems as you are having. The neighbors that had pumps had to have them repaired often. There was not enough water to keep the suction flooded so the pump didn't operated properly, cavitated. Also, pumping from an intermittent low pressure water system almost guarantees all manner of things you do not want in the water will go to your tank.

The neighbors that could drilled wells as that was the only solution.

The subdivision we lived in was also supplied by Prime [Crime] Water who bought the local utility from the government in one of those public/private deals. Manny Villar owns it.

 

[Lee]

18 minutes ago, Possum said:

Putting a pump, vacuum or otherwise on the line to your storage tank is not a good idea. Previously lived in a subdivision with the same problems as you are having. The neighbors that had pumps had to have them repaired often. There was not enough water to keep the suction flooded so the pump didn't operated properly, cavitated. Also, pumping from an intermittent low pressure water system almost guarantees all manner of things you do not want in the water will go to your tank.

This subject was discussed on another MB years ago and the concerns that you have mentioned quickly came out.

Maybe hiring a tanker truck is the way to go. The guard at the water department told us that the delivery list was several months long.

ON 24 Oros news last night, I noted a story that 3500 cases of cholera have broken out recently in the eastern visayas. Coincidence???

[Possum]

1 hour ago, Lee said:

ON 24 Oros news last night, I noted a story that 3500 cases of cholera have broken out recently in the eastern visayas. Coincidence???

Not likely a coincidence. Cholera is passed thru the potable water system. There was an epidemic in Haiti several years ago even though Haiti didn't have a history of cholera. The WHO investigated and traced it to a UN Peacekeeping mission from Nepal discharging sewage into a river. The Nepal military had a history of cholera. The disease spread thru  the ground water and eventually made almost a million sick and killed about 10,000.

As there is no sewage treatment even attempted and water quality regulations are not enforced in most of the Philippines I am not surprised. Cholera can spread like wild fire as the sick pass it on thru their waste to the ground water.

[Sea Turtle]

Water not working sucks.     

Solutions are.

- inline pump (don't tell).  This will direct more water to you than others that do not have it.  easy to do.

- well,  expensive but might result in drinkable water.  Also might be illegal in the city,  don't tell...

- politics,  find the person that can direct a better line flow to you.  I know this can be done...  

- investigate the distribution line all the way to the supply tank from the city.  Sometimes workers don't do the right thing...  As this is a known ongoing issue this is probably not it,  but might be also an issue.

 

[jimeve]

7 minutes ago, Sea Turtle said:

Water not working sucks.     

Solutions are.

- inline pump (don't tell).  This will direct more water to you than others that do not have it.  easy to do.

- well,  expensive but might result in drinkable water.  Also might be illegal in the city,  don't tell...

- politics,  find the person that can direct a better line flow to you.  I know this can be done...  

- investigate the distribution line all the way to the supply tank from the city.  Sometimes workers don't do the right thing...  As this is a known ongoing issue this is probably not it,  but might be also an issue.

 

I have a 2000 liter water tank for the guest-house and a 2000 liter for my house. What is a direct line? 

[Sea Turtle]

Not sure what the term direct line would mean.  Probably a dedicated line from either the water system pump, tank or direct to a feed perhaps 6 inch or larger.  The line to you would not need to be very large, if its always working and has decent pressure.  Half inch or 3/4 would do.

The distribution system has tanks and pumps.  Valves can turn off a pipe from the tank or pump so that more water goes to a different pipe.  When the supply is short sometimes less value customers get shut off on purpose so that another can have more water.  This can happen due to lazy worker or it can be on purpose to ensure someone else gets water.  It can be enlightening to find the valves and see if they just need to be opened more...

Water is like everything else,  they can do whatever they want.  The line at your street could have a larger line put in to feed it from a better supply(some location near that always has water).  Getting permission and doing it yourself is difficult because of access rights on any land to cross.  The actual cost of the pipe (pvc, perhaps 3 inch) is not huge.    Its better if someone convinces the water supplier to do it.