The water crisis continues to deepen by the day. It is like hide and seek — as soon as it disappears in one place, it surfaces in another district.

For example, as soon as the water crisis disappeared in Asir, it gripped Makkah and Riyadh whose citizens, especially those residing in eastern neighborhoods, started suffering from a renewed crisis. They included Al-Yarmouk, Al-Nahda, Al-Khaleej, Al-Nadwa and Al-Natheem, as well as parts of eastern Al-Naseem and Al-Rawdah.

Al-Ahli Company reassured the citizens that work is under way to solve the problem of the repeated water cuts by installing pipes.

Musleh Al-Rouqi, a resident of Al-Nadwa neighborhood in eastern Riyadh, said water cuts annoyed residents of the neighborhood, especially when summer temperatures are rising. He said there are no solutions for the sudden and increased cuts. The neighborhood’s residents had to leave their working places to get water from the National Water Company’s tankers.

“Despite all problems, we are shocked by the bad distribution of water tankers; they dispatch a small water truck every three days for residential buildings, which houses seven families, so people need to buy more water to cover their needs,” said Al-Rouqi.

Imam Fahad Al-Breek said mosques in Al-Nadwa suffered from an acute water shortage. “We do communicate with the water company, which provides mosques with water tankers, but they don’t meet the needs. Sometimes we have to close the toilets because the there is no water,” he said.

Al-Shammari said mosques’ caretakers bring water tankers to meet the needs of worshippers at a cost of SR1,500. He said caretakers agreed to the arrangement that each house getting a full water tanker should call the NWC and tell them to deliver his share of the water to the mosque. This is the only way of tackling the water crisis, he added.

The NWC reassured citizens that the problem of cuts in water supply will be solved.

The official spokesman for the NWC in Riyadh, Khaled Al-Mssyeeh, said water cuts are not a norm, but the latest breakages in water pipes caused confusion in the process of pipe installations.

These are being solved through certain plans and according to available abilities, taking into consideration the nature of the land where pipes are installed.