Ecuador’s capital rocked by water shortage crisis

Desperation is mounting in Ecuador’s capital as thousands of people remain without drinking water a week into Quito’s worst shortage in 25 years.

The daily lives of some 400,000 residents have been seriously disrupted by the emergency, which happened after a landslide damaged a pipeline that supplied water to much of southern Quito.

“We can’t live without water!” shout residents of the Chillogallo neighborhood as they line up along a street, waiting for a tanker to deliver water.

Emergency crews have been racing to distribute water supplies to six affected areas and remove sludge from the damaged pipelines, all while officials in Quito city government and national government officials bicker over how to address the crisis.

With buckets, bottles, trash cans and other kinds of containers, residents wait in the street for a water tanker to arrive. Among them is Inés Castro, 74, who sits on a sidewalk under the sun.

“We’ve been waiting in line since morning, and no one has arrived,” Castro said, with tears welling up in her eyes when asked if anyone accompanied her. “I live alone, I’m all alone,” she replies and said she hopes a neighbor will help her carry the bucket home if she manages to fill it.

The municipality has mobilized some 70 water trucks, but they are not enough to serve everyone and don’t always adhere to a schedule.

Credit: cnn.com

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