MANILA, Philippines — Maynilad Water Services Inc. said on Monday that water service will be cut off daily throughout Metro Manila starting March 28 and 29 to conserve water as the El Niño phenomenon approaches.
According to a tweet from Maynilad, several cities and municipalities, such as Bacoor City, Caloocan City, Cavite City, Imus City, Las Pinas City, Makati City, Malabon City, Manila, Navotas City, Paranaque City, Pasay City, Quezon City, Valenzuela City, and Rosario, Noveleta, and Kawit in Cavite province, will experience a water service interruption from 4 p.m. until 6 a.m.
The duration of the service disruptions will be determined by the amount of raw water that Maynilad’s treatment plants will receive and the amount of rainfall that will occur in the watersheds.
Maynilad explained that the measure is necessary to preserve limited water stores, given the increased likelihood of an El Niño phenomenon happening by the latter half of 2023.
While the elevation in Angat Dam, which provides 90% of the raw water supply for the West Zone, is still at a healthy level as of mid-March, sufficient rains are not expected to fall over the watersheds in the succeeding months to replenish the dams.
They also said it had already taken steps to increase its water supply, like reactivating deep wells and installing modular treatment plants. However, these measures will only reduce the effects of water scarcity that may occur if the water level in Angat Dam continues to drop due to the projected dry spell.
The water service provider encouraged its customers to store adequate amounts of water to last them during the water service interruption period, further urging them to keep water stored in clean, covered containers.
Maynilad warned customers that when water service is turned back on, they may notice a slight change in color as the water flows through the pipelines and washes away the naturally occurring mineral deposits.
It advised customers to let the water flow briefly until it clears but only use the initial water flow for non-drinking purposes, such as flushing toilets.
Maynilad said that its mobile water tankers are always ready to deliver clean water in case of an emergency.