As the mercury rises, so does water use

Beat the heat: Mohd Hafiz putting a bucket of water in his bedroom in Bandar Dato Onn, Johor Baru, in an attempt to bring down the ­temperature after learning the tip from social media.

JOHOR BARU: Consumers are taking more showers and watering their plants more often as the sweltering weather continues.

Administrative assistant Mohd Hafiz Ahmad, who stays in Bandar Dato Onn here, said his water bill doubled as he had been taking more showers to cool off in the past month.

“My latest water bill was about RM16, from the usual RM7 or RM8.

“I sweat quite easily, so I shower twice at night before I sleep to avoid that sticky feeling.

“I also have about 30 potted plants, mostly bougainvillea, and I have been watering them more often to prevent them from drying up in the heat,” he said.

To cope with the heat, the 35-year-old also turned to social media for tips and tricks such as putting a bucket of water in his bedroom in an attempt to lower the temperature.

“I do not have air-conditioning at home, so I have to look for creative ways as it gets quite warm, making it difficult to sleep at night,” he said.

Mohd Hafiz added that he also purchased two pails to store water in case of water rationing.

“Based on news reports, the hot weather is forecast to last for another few months, and states like Kedah and Penang are already experiencing water disruptions, so I am just planning ahead.

“Thankfully in Johor, we still receive rain, and so hopefully it will not come to that,” he said.

Tuition teacher Rachel Ngoi, 30, also noticed that her water and electricity bills had gone up.

She said the fans are constantly switched on to keep her house in Taman Daya ventilated.

“During the day when my siblings and I are at work, my mother, who is taking care of my nieces, will keep the fan on at all times to make sure the kids are comfortable.

“I find myself going out more often as well – either to my office or to my friend’s house – to seek refuge as I do not have air-conditioning at home,” she said, adding that her father had also been watering his plants more often.

“Luckily, it rained for about 20 minutes in my area the past two days, so that helped to cool things down before it became hot again the next day,” she said.

SAJ Ranhill Sdn Bhd operations director Anuar Abdul Ghani said water consumption in Johor had gone up by 50 million litres per day (MLD) in the past one month.

“Water consumption has risen to 1,050MLD from the previous 1,000MLD, with Johor Baru recording the highest water usage,” he said.

He added that the dams in the state are operating at “healthy levels”, with the Juaseh, Gunung Ledang and Linggiu dams reporting water levels above normal due to rain in the past few days.

Earlier, the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) had warned of a Level 1 heatwave in eight districts in Peninsular Malaysia, such as in Padang Terap in Kedah, Pasir Mas in Kelantan, Bera in Pahang, and Segamat and Muar in Johor.

According to MetMalaysia’s heatwave page, a Level 1 warning is issued when temperatures at a location are between 35°C and 37°C for three consecutive days.