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UPANG: Kupang residents are dealing with the effects of a shortage of clean water due to prolonged drought, with some turning to river water to meet their daily needs.

Others are buying water at Rp 100,000 per tank (5,000 liters).

Those who live along the river bank are forced to make do retrieving water that has traveled 200 meters down a cliff.

“Our wells are drying out. We don’t have money to buy water. We have no options but take river water for cooking,” Tuak subdistrict resident Melkias Dedhan said Tuesday.

The dry season took a significant toll upon most water springs north of Kupang Regency.

The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency reported that temperatures reached 35 degrees Celsius. “The hot weather over the past few days has contributed to rapid water evaporation and the water levels have dropped,” an agency official said.

Drought has been reported at 12 water springs managed by state water tap company PDAM.