Overview
- The rationing began Friday and splits seven municipalities served by the Carraizo reservoir into two zones that alternate 48 hours with and 48 hours without service.
- The current phase affects more than 180,000 customer accounts and hundreds of thousands of residents, with water trucks deployed and hospitals and long‑term care facilities given delivery priority.
- Authorities warned outages could stretch to 72 hours, the governor said the duration is unknown, and residents have been told to boil running water for at least three minutes after service resumes.
- The emergency follows a record‑dry July and a NOAA forecast that gives better than 70% odds of below‑normal rainfall and above‑normal heat through October, leaving little near‑term relief.
- The crisis is worsened by chronic system failures: PRASA says about 65% of produced water is lost or unbilled because of leaks and aging pipes, and communities had documented prolonged outages earlier in 2026.