“Water needs cannot wait,” said Samino, 55, a resident of Gudangharjo village in Paranggupito, Wonogiri, Central Java.

Samino recently sold his goat for money to buy clean water, as he and fellow villagers struggle to cope with a drought that has plagued parts of Central Java since July.

In Kemalang district, Klaten, the price of clean water has skyrocketed to Rp 300,000 (US$23) for a 5,000-liter tank from the previous Rp 90,000 per tank.

In Boyolali, Sragen and Wonogiri, meanwhile, residents now have to pay Rp 250,000 per tank.

Like Samino, residents in the four districts have begun selling their livestock to buy clean water.

“There is no other way; no more lakes from which we can take water, and we can’t rely on unreliable support for clean water,” he said on Sunday.

Despite reports from the central government claiming that this year’s dry season was relatively normal, some areas in the country are facing a water crisis.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has announced that as of Sunday, the drought has hit 105 regencies and municipalities, 715 districts and 2,726 villages across Java, the country’s most populous island, and the Nusa Tenggara islands.

“A total of 3.9 million people are suffering from a water crisis and are waiting for supplies of clean water,” said BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho.

The impacted number of villages was higher than in 2016 but lower than 2015, he added.

The drought is also affecting 56,334 hectares of agriculture lands, causing harvest failures to 18,516 ha of farm lands.

Central Java has been hit the hardest, with 1.41 million people in 1,254 villages lacking access to clean water, prompting the Central Java administration to announce an emergency status until October.

Central Statistics Agency (BPS) data shows that in 2015, about 33.7 million people lived in the province’s 7,809 villages and 573 districts.

In West Java, nearly 1 million people in 496 villages are struggling with the drought, while 588 villages in East Java are facing a water shortage

The crisis has affected 640,048 people from 328 villages in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), with nine regencies in both NTB and neighboring East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) declaring an emergency.

Most of these areas have been experiencing the same plight for the past several years, Sutopo said.

“Rivers are drying up due to the dry season. Damages to the environment have also contributed to the crisis, while the need for water is increasing,” he said.

The BNPB claimed it had provided water tanks to the affected areas to help residents satisfy their daily needs, such as drinking and cooking. It has also disbursed support funds to areas that had declared a state of emergency.

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) announced that most of Java is experiencing a peak in dry season, with the rainy season expected to start in October or November.

In stark contrast, West Sumatra and Gorontalo was struck over the weekend with high intensity rain that caused floods and landslides in several locations, killing one resident.

Hundreds of houses were inundated by floodwaters and landslides blocked roads, causing congestion on Sunday, said R. Pagar Negara, West Sumatra BPBD’s logistics and emergency unit head.

Heavy rain in Gorontalo, which started on early Sunday morning, left five villages submerged by floodwater, displacing hundreds of residents.

These villages are Taludaa, Masiaga, Moodulio, Sogitia and Muara Bone, all in Bone district, Bone Bolango regency.

Djemi Amnifu from Kupang, Syofiardi Bachyul Jb from Padang and Syamsul Huda M. Suhari from Gorontalo contributed to this story.

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