Bali faces water crisis amid rainy season delay

The authorities of the Indonesian island of Bali began to deliver clean water to residents due to the threat of its shortage amid the delay of the rainy season, the ANTARA agency reported, citing the head of the regional disaster management department Gede Teja Bhusan.

“To cope with the threat of a clean water crisis among the population, we, together with the Indonesian Red Cross and the Office of Public Works, Territorial Planning, Housing and Settlements, delivered a total of 177.5 thousand liters of clean water to several districts,” he said.

According to Bhusana, the beginning of the rainy season in Bali due to El Niño delayed until early November. This has led to more frequent droughts, lack of clean water, as well as forest and landscape fires in different parts of the island.

Of the 177.5 thousand liters of water, 62.5 thousand were sent to Tabanan, 56 thousand to Buleleng, 30 thousand to Klungkung, 24 thousand to Dzhembrana and 5 thousand to Karangasem. The regional office said that the situation as a whole remains under control, no fatalities.

Dry weather is also observed in other parts of Indonesia. In October, the country battled large-scale wildfires that authorities and experts linked to El Niño for several weeks. Cloud seeding was used in some areas to fight fire to cause precipitation.