Many residents of an urban area in Hanoi are experiencing a major disruption in their daily life, staying awake throughout the night to fetch water and resorting to reusing wastewater following almost four days of water supply interruption.

Thanh Ha Fresh Water JSC, headquartered in Hanoi’s Ha Dong District, suspended one of its two supply sources to Thanh Ha urban area, which is home to about 16,000 people in Thanh Oai District, after the local residents reported signs of contamination in the water. 

Many residents of the 23-building complex suffered from skin peeling, ulcers, and rashes.

Subsequent test results from the Institute of Environmental Technology revealed that the water had an ammonium content 38.2 times higher than the permitted limit, and the chlorine content exceeded the limit by several times.

A meeting convened by the Hanoi Department of Construction and involving the municipal Department of Health, the Hanoi Center for Disease Control, the People’s Committees of Ha Dong and Thanh Oai Districts, and representatives of residents of Thanh Ha urban area on October 13 led to Thanh Ha Fresh Water JSC ceasing the supply of water from its underground source.

The supplier currently only retains supply from the Duong River surface water source, resulting in a water shortage in more than ten buildings of the urban area since October 14.

“Currently, we have distributed all the available water to the residents,” Duong Dinh Trinh, deputy director of Thanh Ha Fresh Water JSC, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, adding that when the water source will be replenished to a level adequate for the entire urban area remains uncertain.

As a result, the daily life in Thanh Ha urban area has descended into chaos.

For the past few days, Bui Duc Cuu’s family has resorted to eating their meals using disposable plastic bowls and chopsticks as they have to save water for other priorities rather than washing dishes. 

“I’m not accustomed to using these disposables as it’s quite inconvenient,” Cuu said. 

“I’m aware of the environmental impact, but we don’t have any other option.”

He also expressed a strong desire to return to the usual comforts, such as taking a shower. 

As he puts it, such luxuries are currently out of reach.

“My family of six people, including children, has to reuse wastewater from daily activities, such as using wastewater after brushing teeth to flush the toilet and saving water drained from the air conditioner for watering plants,” said a resident named Dung.

Many residents resorted to purchasing bottled water for cooking, drinking, bathing, and washing. 

However, the demand was so high, with thousands of people in need, that the item soon ran out of stock at numerous grocery stores and supermarkets in the vicinity.

At 6:00 pm on Tuesday, shortly after getting back from work, hundreds of Thanh Ha urban area residents assembled in the apartment building lobbies upon hearing that a clean-water truck would be arriving to provide assistance. 

Children and the elderly were also enlisted to transport various types of buckets and water containers.

All hurriedly formed a queue extending from the elevator area to the inner courtyard to await their turn.

A member of the apartment complex’s rapid response team stood sweating by the water faucet connected to the tanker truck as he consistently transferred the faucet head to the water containers of his neighbors. 

Occasionally, he raised his voice, urging younger individuals to let the elderly and children access it first.

The demand from the hundreds of people was so high that the truck quickly ran out of water. 

Disappointment set in, and many sat down on the steps.

Hope was rekindled when it was announced that another water truck, provided by generous individuals to support the residents during the ongoing clean water crisis, would arrive at 10:00 pm.

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