"Based on the latest data, eight villages are facing a clean water shortage as precipitation in Banyumas has decreased," Ariono Poerwanto, acting head of the Banyumas disaster mitigation office, said here on Friday.
The drought-affected villages included Banjarparakan in Rawalo Sub-district, Nusadadi in Sumpiuh Sub-district, Karanganyar in Patikraja Sub-district, Kediri in Karanglewas Sub-district, Srowot in Kalibagor Sub-district, and Pekuncen in Jatilawang Sub-district.
"And the latest ones are Tamansari Village in Karanglewas Sub-district, and Karangtalun Kidul in Purwojati," he added.
He said his office has distributed clean water to those villages.
The local disaster mitigation office is monitoring other villages to anticipate a water crisis there, he remarked.
One thousand water tanks have been prepared to send clean water to villages suffering from water shortages during the current dry season, he said.
"In total, we have readied 1,000 tanks of clean water," he remarked.
Last year, droughts caused water crises in the sub-districts of Sumpiuh, Banyumas, Somagede, Kalibagor, Cilongok, Purwojati, Kebasen, and Karanglewas.
In the meantime, forecasting that this year's dry season will be drier as compared to that of the previous year, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has reminded the regional authorities to intensify vigilance over possible forest fires and droughts.
"Regions which were affected by droughts during the June, July and August period of last year should be vigilant this year," Adi Ripalsi, head of the agency's climate information analysis sub-unit, said in Jakarta on Friday, adding, "Last year, the precipitation during the dry season was less than 20 millimeters a month, and this year, it can go lower."
According to BMKG, nearly all regions in Java, notably West Java, Central Java and East Java, have begun to experience the dry season, which is expected to hit its peak in July and August 2019.
Translator: Wuryanti P, Fardah
Editor: Bambang Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
