Water cuts in eastern Costa del Sol towns bumped up again, from 10pm to 7.30am

Water restrictions are being increased again in Vélez-Málaga on the eastern Costa del Sol. While waiting for the rain that is forecast for this week to raise the level of La Viñuela reservoir in the Axarquía, the more than 85,000 inhabitants of Vélez-Málaga have been living since Sunday 13 October, with a further 30 minutes of restrictions, taking it from 10pm to 7.30am.

The residents of Vélez-Málaga have been living with daily water cuts since 30 June 2023, due to the extreme drought that has plagued Malaga province for the last five years. The restrictions have fluctuated in times and areas, but have never been less than seven hours a day. However, after the height of the tourist season in July and August when the cuts went from midnight to 7am, from mid-September the situation became considerably more complicated, increasing by two hours, from 10.30pm to 7.30am.

However, after the last meeting of the Drought Committee, held on Thursday 10 October in Malaga, in which it was agreed to reduce the maximum amount of water available from 200 to 180 litres per inhabitant per day, Vélez-Málaga town hall and the public water company Aqualia have been forced to increase the daily cut-off time by another 30 minutes. Thus, as reported by the town hall via social media, the schedule of restrictions is, as of Sunday 13 October, from 10pm to 7.30am.

The cuts affect Vélez-Málaga, Torre del Mar, Caleta, Baviera Golf, Almayate, Benajarafe, Chilches Pueblo and Costa. “If there are any changes during the week they will be communicated. We apologise for any inconvenience,” the town hall explained in the official message. For the time being, this situation will continue until Sunday 20 October, when the town hall and Aqualia are scheduled to update the timetables and cut-off zones.

Among the comments from local residents about this latest extension, Silvia Palomo posted, “We have children who go to school and have to relieve themselves and those of us who go to work like to have a shower and be well washed, there is no right for you to make it so late, let's see if it is true that you respect what you say here and give it at 7.30am.”

Niels Henrik Kristensen, laments the substantial change compared to the summer. “What a pity there were not the same restrictions throughout the summer when there were a lot of tourists using a lot of water”. Junior Leal asked about the promised desalination plant: “And the desalination plant for when, or do you still not see the need for it?"

The town hall has acknowledged to SUR that the situation “is difficult and complicated” and that the outlook for the coming weeks “is not at all promising if there is not abundant rainfall very soon, so the water cuts could increase even more”.

Municipal sources added that “the schedule may be subject to variations caused by the availability of water and the time needed for each tank to have enough water”.