General News of Saturday, 29 April 2000

Source: GNA

Water shortage hits parts of Accra

Accra, April 29, GNA - Acute water shortage has hit communities and residents in some parts of the Accra metropolis for the past six days.

The areas include Dansoman Asoredanho, Tweneboa, Otaten, Wesley Grammar, and parts of South Odorkor. Residents including children of school-going age, wake up in the early hours of each day since last Monday, and walk long distances in search of water for domestic and commercial purposes.

Workers, students and businessmen and women in the affected communities are frustrated as they attend to work very late. Hairdressing salons, which use running water are either shutting their shops or opening late, and closing early in the day because of the acute water shortage, whose cause is not immediately known.

Some of the residents the Ghana News Agency interviewed said that the situation was becoming unbearable, adding that the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) had offered no reason for the water shortage.

Madam Esi Kabriba, a resident at Asoredanho said there had been no water to flush water closets in the area, thus compelling some residents to defecate at refuse dumps and vantage points.

Mr Emmanuel Danso, a resident of Tweneboa called on the management of the GWCL to serve the affected areas with water tanks to ease the plight of the people.

He said in spite of the shortage, at the end of the month, revenue collectors of the GWCL would distribute huge water bills for service not rendered. The Ghana News Agency could not reach officials of the GWCL for explanation to the water shortage in the affected areas, as they had gone on weekend holidays.