(Baonghean.vn) - The hot weather has lasted for a long time, with temperatures sometimes exceeding 40 degrees Celsius.oThe COVID-19 pandemic has caused a severe shortage of clean water for most families in Nghi Hoa (Nghi Loc).
Currently, in Nghi Hoa, the main sources of water for daily use are rainwater (for cooking) and tap water (for bathing and washing). However, for more than a month now, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Dung's family (in Hoa Dong hamlet) has run out of rainwater. Every day, to get water for cooking, Mrs. Dung and many other households in the hamlet go to the village's temple well to fetch water. Mrs. Dung said: "Thanks to the water from the village's temple well, we have water to use."
It is known that the temple well dates back to ancient times. In the past, the temple well supplied water to the entire village and the Hoa-Thuan-Long district. The well water is clear and cool, and no matter how harsh the weather or how dry and parched the fields may be, the water in the temple well never runs dry.
Unlike Mrs. Dung and other households near the temple well, those living further away have to buy water at a price of 120,000 VND/m2 for their daily use. Mr. Dang Tho Thieu, Vice Chairman of Nghi Hoa commune, said: "My own family has had to buy water for almost a month now."
The people of Nghi Hoa commune, and many others in the province, who are suffering from a shortage of clean water, are hoping for an end to the harsh weather and for the rain to come.
These images were captured by a reporter from Nghe An newspaper on the afternoon of June 4th in Nghi Hoa commune.
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| Due to the prolonged hot weather, for more than a month now, many families in Nghi Hoa (Nghi Loc) have been facing a severe shortage of water for daily use. To get water for cooking, the only solution for Ms. Nguyen Thi Dung (Hoa Dong hamlet) is to carry buckets and pails to the temple well to fetch water for use. |
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| Ms. Nguyen Thi Dung said: "This is the only village well in the area. Since ancient times, the well has provided water for daily use not only for Nghi Hoa commune but also for Nghi Thuan and Nghi Long communes, who come to fetch water. Fortunately, thanks to the water from Chua village well, my family and many other households in the hamlet have water to use." |
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| These are familiar sights for the residents of Hoa Dong village for over a month now. |
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| To store water, Nguyen Thi Dung's family mobilized almost all the buckets and basins in their house. |
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| Ms. Dung's solution is to minimize water usage. |
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| Unlike households near the temple well, many families in Nghi Hoa commune have to buy water from Nguyen Van Long's water business (Chợ Chùa hamlet). Long said that on average, he sells over 300 bottles of mineral water and nearly 10 cubic meters of tap water daily. |
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| Every day, the busiest time for people to buy water is around 4 to 5 pm. Not only residents of Nghi Hoa commune but also people from Nghi Thuan commune come to buy water at Mr. Nguyen Van Long's establishment. |
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| To promptly serve the people during peak seasons like this, Mr. Nguyen Van Long has to hire additional workers at a salary of 3-5 million VND per month. |
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| Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha said: For more than half a month now, her family has been spending 10,000 VND on water every day. For a farmer, 300,000 VND per month is a considerable amount of money. |
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| Each bucket of water like this costs 3,000 dong. |
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| Each bottle of drinking water like this costs 8,000 dong. |
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| Leaving Nghi Hoa, the image of Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha with her simple yet incredibly difficult wish, "When will it rain? When will this end?", comes to mind, especially with the increasingly harsh weather conditions. |
Thanh Thuy
