(SPOT.ph) Update: As of July 16, Maynilad said the daily water service interruptions will be "suspended indefinitely" as the Tropical Depression Dodong managed to increase the water level over the minimum requirement in the Ipo Dam, enough to compensate for Angat Dam's lower releases.
"We will provide an update once the daily nighttime service interruptions will again have to be reinstated," Maynilad said in a Facebook post.
Over 600,000 residents in several parts of Metro Manila will have little to no supply of water starting Wednesday, July 12 as Maynilad prepares for the possible worsening effects of El Niño, which could mean severe dry spells and water shortage.
Water supplied by Maynilad in Quezon City, Manila, Caloocan City, Malabon City, Valenzuela City and Navotas City will be lessened or unavailable for its customers to spread out the supply of water in Angat Dam, the source of raw water in Metro Manila and its neighbors Rizal, Cavite, and Bulacan.
“Maynilad will get less supply than it needs to sustain normal service levels. Spreading out the limited supply will necessitate the implementation of daily service interruptions in some portions of the West Zone,” Maynilad said in a press release.
This is expected to occur in selected barangays every night at 7 p.m. until early the morning of the following day. It is unclear how long this water service interruption will last, but PAGASA sees El Niño persisting well into the first quarter of 2024.
However, Maynilad noted that the water service interruptions might be "not immediately felt by July 12" and "shorter than projected" since it has leftover rain from watersheds and various supply augementation programs in place.
“The schedule that we posted assumes a worst-case scenario already, which means that the actual experience should be shorter than announced,” Maynilad spokesperson Jen Rufo told CNN Philippines. Still, customers are advised to prepare for less to no water scenarios.
Also read: El Niño Is Likely to Develop This 2023, According to PAGASA
Starting July 12, there will be Maynilad water interruption in the following cities:
Caloocan City
Malabon City
Manila
Navotas City
Quezon City
Valenzuela City
Updated (July 17, 2023): This article has been updated with Maynilad's announcement to suspend the daily water interruptions indefinitely.