KOTA KINABALU: Residents of four main villages on Pulau Banggi, Malaysia's biggest island are at their wits end on how to source for water supply, as the heat wave persists nationwide.
Community leader Jimbo Juisali said there are about 50 villages on Banggi, which measures about 440 sq km, and most are badly affected by the hot and dry weather.
The four affected villages are the main township of Karakit, Perpaduan, Lok Tohog and Singgah Mata.
“Most villages still depend on wells and gravity system from water sources but four main villages linked with piped supply from the Pangkalan Darat treatment plant however are facing shortfall in supply.
“There’s still water at the plant’s reservoir and this is where transporters have helped deliver water to the villagers at RM20 per 400 gallon (1,500 litre) plastic tanks,” he said.
The plant is about 10km from Karakit where the main jetty is located.
Jimbo said some of the affected villagers also carry water from water sources on the island or get their supply from friends in other villages.
“There are wells on the four islands but all have dried up because the residents no longer ‘depend’ on them because of the piped water supply that was available since 2007,” he explained.
The water shortage has captured the attention of netizens, who have rallied for aid to be given to the islanders. The hashtag #BanggiWaterCrisis was trending on Twitter this morning.