Mayor Jack seeks RO machines

Majuro Mayor Ladie Jack.
Majuro Mayor Ladie Jack.

The drought, after teasing Majuro and Ebeye with a bit of rain in December, has put its cards on the table, and it’s a winner — if you like being thirsty and not taking showers.

Reservoir levels dropped dramatically during the first three weeks of January, down by about 10 million gallons compared to mid-December. MWSC reported the reservoir is down to 22.7 million gallons.

“We’re receiving complaints from the public that they’re out of water,” said new Majuro Mayor Ladie Jack Tuesday, who added a number of schools have run out of water. Jack said Majuro Atoll Local Government’s Council held its first meeting Friday and preparing for the drought was the top item on the agenda.

Jack said he wants MALGov to acquire reverse osmosis water makers to support mobile delivery of water to different Majuro communities, and is hoping that they can leverage matching grant funding with US disaster funding. It requires a declaration from the national government to open the door to access these matching grant relief funds.

The National Weather Service reported only trace rainfall of half an inch has fallen since January 1.

Read more about this in the January 22, 2016 edition of the Marshall Islands Journal.