Jakartans buy mineral water for bathing<\/p>\n
Zakki Hakim, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
\"People might be able to survive the trauma of last week's bomb
\nimpact but force them to live without water, and it is unlikely
\nthey would survive,\" said Ella, 27, a resident of Karet Belakang,
\nSouth Jakarta.<\/p>\n
In the last 10 days, customers of PAM Lyonnasie Jaya (Palyja)
\nin areas such as Karet Belakang, Tebet and Kebon Kacang have been
\nsuffering from water shortages since not a drop of water has come
\nout of their faucets.<\/p>\n
Ella contacted a customer service officer who said that the
\nprolonged dry season caused the decreasing water debit and there
\nwas nothing they could do but wait for rain.<\/p>\n
The officer admitted that it could mean months before a
\nfavorable rain would fall. In the mean time, residents would have
\nto find their own water.<\/p>\n
Another resident of the area, Igor O'Neill, 30, has been
\npurchasing five-gallon bottles of potable water for bathing,
\nwashing and flushing the toilet.<\/p>\n
\"It was silly. It was like bathing with milk,\" said the
\nAustralian, who has to pay Rp 2,500 (29 U.S. cents) per five
\ngallons, which is only enough to bath twice.<\/p>\n
He questioned Palyja's capability as a private company in
\nmanaging such an essential service, saying that the company
\nshould come up with a solution such as a rotating system so each
\narea could get water, although not every day, during the drought.<\/p>\n
Maria Sidabutar, spokesperson for Palyja, told The Jakarta
\nPost on Thursday that there was no emergency as yet and a
\nrotating system would not be needed.<\/p>\n
An emergency status would be applied if the water debit
\nreached an average of 3,000 liters per second, she said.<\/p>\n
Maria claimed that currently Palyja could maintain an average
\nof 4,000 liter per second but admitted that last week it once
\nreached a level of 2,600 liters per second.<\/p>\n
She said that these days Palyja was coordinating with Perum
\nJasa Tirta II, which maintained the water flow from Jatiluhur dam
\nin Purwakarta, West Java, to ensure an adequate amount of water
\ncould flow through and reach all areas in the city.<\/p>\n
The critical areas affected by the water shortage include
\nMuara Angke, Muara Karang, Penjaringan, Pluit, Cengkareng,
\nPegadungan, Kali Deres, Mangga Dua, Mangga Besar, Karet, Tebet,
\nManggarai and Tanah Abang.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jakartans-buy-mineral-water-for-bathing-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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