Water Shortage Hits Central Region

More than 200 households are continuing to struggle with water shortages in a Ghenh Rang Ward fishing village in central coastal Binh Dinh Province.
The shortage has extended into a second month and began when three local wells ran out of water, cutting off households in Quy Nhon City. Local resident Vo Thi My said her family had since resorted to buying water from the city to conduct daily activities, like cooking and drinking.
“At this time, our tank to store rain water was also empty because of the prolonged hot weather,” she said.
According to one Vietnam News Agency's correspondent in the province, it costs around VND70,000-100,000 ($3-5) for each 1,000 liters of clean water. The extra cost has been a heavy burden for some households, who remain some of the poorest in the city. Another local resident, Bui Minh Chuong, said the ward’s People’s Committee had suggested providing VND1 million ($47) to each household for digging wells. “But we said no,” he said. The cost of digging a well was estimated to be about VND10 million ($470) and nobody was sure that water would be found, he said.
Nguyen Xuan Thanh, Secretary of the ward said that the fishing village was located in a remote part of the city and was surrounded by mountains and the sea.(Vietnam News June 19)