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View all search resultsRivers dry up, water crisis worsens as El Niño intensifies
In Central Kalimantan, prolonged drought has dried up parts of the Barito River, one of the longest and largest rivers in the Kalimantan region, bringing river transportation to a standstill.
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Two children play with a kite at the dried-up Sumberkepuh Reservoir in Nganjuk, East Java, on Sept. 6, 2026. The 20.9-hectare reservoir, which provides irrigation for about 400 hectares of farmland, has been dry for the past two months amid the prolonged dry season. (Antara /Muhammad Mada)
C
ommunities in many parts of the country are facing worsening water shortages as a strengthening El Niño brings prolonged dry conditions, putting residents at risk.
People have been forced to buy water from mobile vendors after their wells ran dry or became increasingly turbid following four months without rain.
Some people have turned to local rivers to wash their clothes as water supplies run low. But the rivers are also drying up, with sluggish flow and only stagnant pools remaining among rocks and patches of mud.
Others have resorted to repeatedly filtering turbid well water for bathing and washing kitchen utensils.
Rasini, a resident of Ciganjeng village in Padaherang district, West Java, said the water level in her well had fallen sharply over the past two months.
“For the past two months, the water has been yellow. There is also very little left, and it has to be filtered several times before it can be used,” she said on Tuesday as quoted by Detik.com.
Rasini said she now relied entirely on purchased water for drinking and other household needs, adding that she hoped authorities would provide water assistance to help ease the cost.
