Discoloured water, which residents fear may be contaminated, is flowing from the pipes in Cedros and residents say they are unable to drink it.
The discoloured looking water started coming in the taps as long as a month ago and residents say they are now forced to buy water to drink, wash and cook.
A tank of water costs $500 and $800 depending on the size of the tank.
In an interview, resident Deodath Toolsie said the worse hit areas were Coromandel Village and Granville. He said while Bonasse Village has a clean water supply, residents in other areas were not so fortunate.
“We do not get water regularly and we have to depend on truck-borne water. In Bois Bourg, Bamboo and Icacos, people are suffering because there is no water in the taps,” Toolsie said.
He noted that the fresh water from the Granville Water Treatment plant was being sent to service Point Fortin and the desalinated water from the Point Fortin desalinated plant was being sent lower down in the peninsula.
Councillor for Cedros Shankar Teelucksingh said bottled water was in high demand because residents were unable to drink the possibly contaminated water. He said some residents have called for a rebate on their bills.
“I have received complaints from people and WASA is telling them they cannot get rebates. WASA is giving people excuses. We do not know why the water is coming this colour.
“At one point before, we even got salty water. A source said one of WASA’s main is leaking and this may have contributed to the discolouration,” Teelucksingh said.
He also said the water had a stench and people were not even using it to wash their clothes.
“It is alarming and residents of the peninsula are calling on the minister to investigate and ensure that they get a proper, safe and reliable water supply,” Teelucksingh added.
Several attempts were made to contact Public Utilities Minister Robert Le Hunte on his cellphone but calls went unanswered.
Manager of corporate communications Gregory Roxborough yesterday took the contact numbers of some of the residents involved so that the matter could be looked into and addressed.