Severe Water Crisis Hits Oran: Algerian City Faces Week-long Supply Disruption

Tuesday 21 May 2024 - 08:55

The Algerian authorities have announced a major water supply disruption in Oran, the country's second-largest city. Approximately 800,000 residents will be deprived of access to running water for an entire week.

While Algerians are accustomed to water cuts or rationing, with usage often restricted to a few hours per day, this latest crisis is particularly alarming. More than 200,000 households in Oran will be left without access to water for a full week.

This means no water for showers, drinking, cooking, or flushing toilets for seven days, disrupting the most basic daily routines of the city's inhabitants from May 21 to May 26.

The authorities have not issued an apology for this upheaval in the lives of Oran's residents and surrounding areas. They cite a "breakdown" and maintenance issues at the Chatt El Hillel desalination plant in Ain Témouchen. Furthermore, they anticipate a gradual return of water supply through a trickle system, expected to last several weeks.

Potable water will be available only in extremely limited quantities, even as temperatures rise in the country. This approach is chosen to avoid completely cutting off water supply during the Eid Al-Adha festivities, which could lead to a public health catastrophe. Similar measures are planned before the summer.

Deprived of their basic right to access water in a respectable manner, residents of Africa's largest country's second-largest city find themselves enduring this situation without recourse.

As the September presidential elections approach, Algerians seem inclined to cast a protest vote, but against whom? Candidate Tebboune is likely to take the reins of the country despite his empty promises and illusory grandiose projects.

President Abdelmadjid Tebboune himself announced before the United Nations General Assembly in September that he would install a desalination plant capable of producing 1.3 billion cubic meters of water per day by the end of 2024. This claim drew ridicule from global experts in the field.

In a nation grappling with water scarcity, Oran's residents find themselves at the forefront of this crisis, facing an unprecedented week-long deprivation of a fundamental necessity. As the authorities scramble to address the situation, the impact on daily life and public sentiment remains a pressing concern.