I'm not at all religious, nor do I hold any mystical beliefs. But its odd how under times of duress, we would solemnly make prayers to anyone, or anything who might be listening. If praying to a pebble could somehow make us feel better, then why not, eh? The tribulations that I have to endure right now is by far not the worst thing in the world, all things considered nowadays, but it's unpleasant enough that I'm willing to pray for it.
Today, our wells run dry, and our taps but barely eek out droplets every few seconds. My household is facing a disruption in the main water supply, along with many others. When I say many, I do mean millions, as its affecting the entirety of the Klang Valley. This is the most populous region in Malaysia, encompassing land four-times the size of neighbouring Singapore, and home to a third of our population; some 8-million people.
Bone Dry.
Credits to: GIPHY - PixelFoxy
For the past few days, and for a few more from now, all of us will have to carefully ration water by the buckets, tubs, bowls, cups, and any other container that could feasibly hold liquid. Right at this moment, every drop of H20 is precious, and leaking even a teaspoon's worth is equal to lighting an oil well on fire. As if its already not bad enough having to live with a virus running amok, we can't even wash our hands properly for fear of not having sufficient waters to drink.
I'm not going to try and ruin your appetite by going into vivid detail, but I've not had a proper wash yet since I woke up. It's nearly bedtime, and my body is reeking like an Olympian marathon runner's sock after 40-kilometres. But a lack of personal hygiene isn't the most serious consequence of having to live without a crucial resource in human civilisation. Hospitals and medical centres, including those treating Covid-19 patients, are seeing their sinks filled with cobwebs as well.
I've just read a sad tale on Twitter, of how one man's father had to skip on their haemodialysis treatment, which is a process of filtering one's kidneys through a machine, because the clinic's water supply was cut abruptly. There's no escape, not even in some of the largest cities in the country, including Kuala Lumpur. They're bone dry, though one upside is that I don't have to listen to my neighbours banging pots and pans all day.
Credits to: Metro Daily | The Gong river.
I don't know how they cook, but their kitchen sounds like artillery shells dropping on the trenches of the Western Front. No water, means no cooking. Suffice to say, it has been a much more tranquil day. Having walked around outside earlier to meet the fellow delivering my pizza, I saw a tanker lorry passing by. I'm guessing like a lot of other neighbourhoods, these tankers are being mobilised en masse to ferry around much needed water.
The source of all that precious liquid feeding into millions of households is the Gong river, one of many waterways that make its way into our sinks, showers, and toilets. It's not the largest river here, but its big enough that any single stoppage to its flow could potentially be catastrophic. The worse part, is that the reason behind why we can't bathe or drink in peace isn't caused naturally. It wasn't a force of nature, or a drought that's preventing me from taking a shower.
Humans. Always The Humans.
Credits to: The Daily News, and New Strait Times
It's humans, not hundreds or thousands, but just four. These clearly very environmentally-, and socially-conscious folk own a factory in an industrial park near the river. The work with all sorts of chemicals and solvents that don't really belong in the human body, including motor oil. They decided that logically of course, they would just dump these into the river, hoping we won't notice. Thankfully, water treatment plants caught wind, and stopped before contaminated H20 gets even more people sick.
Amazingly, this isn't even the first time its happened, as this factory, and its four horsemen of the apocalypse are repeat offenders. They've been caught dumping nasty crap into the same river more than once before, because throwing chemicals here is a lot cheaper than disposing of it safely. This recent shenanigan caught them with their pants down, and it was decided that it would be their last straw. They've been arrested, fined, and their factory was shut.
Justice. Yet, we can't ignore the fact that 8-million people are troubled because of a few negligent, ignorant, and selfish people. Above all, the system of governance that should've given more oversight over the matter hadn't done their jobs. I'll leave that for the courts to handle, but as of right now, all I want is a shower. It reminds me of how important water is to our lives, and with how easy it is to turn a tap and have as much water as you need, we take it for granted sometimes.
It's only when you lose the ability to have that water, do we realise how terribly difficult it must be for those communities in the world where pipelines don't exist. In any case, I'll keep praying. As vigilant as we always are, since this isn't the first time, it had caught us by surprise. Always expect the unexpected, as they say. Maybe I should try and prepare offerings to the water spirits this time. I did have some leftover mozzarella cheese sticks from Domino's, so I wonder if they could accept that as a gift. Anyone here know whether water spirits like cheese sticks?
Credits to: GIPHY - Mammouth55
P.S. - Just immediately after hitting that good ol' 'Publish' button, water came gushing in through the taps. I guess water spirits really do love those mozzarella cheese sticks, after all. Anyways, although we have water now, the supply won't be fully restored for a few more days, so rationing is still a thing we need to do. For now though, I'm finally going to take a shower, and I shall scrub clean until flesh comes ripping off. Cheers, and good night :-D
