▲ A vehicle carrying bottled water to Chudo Island, Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong
"Droughts are always an emergency. Right now, villagers living in high-altitude areas are struggling to even use the restroom properly because there is no water," Choi, a 74-year-old village head of Daehang Village in Chudo Island, Sanyang-eup, Tongyeong, Gyeongsangnam-do, said in a desperate voice today.
Chudo Island, home to about 140 residents, is an island located about 21 kilometers southwest of Tongyeong Port.
Due to its distance from the mainland, a metropolitan water supply system has not been installed, leaving residents to rely on rainwater or groundwater for their daily lives.
Choi explained, "This year, too little rain fell during the monsoon season, and with the onset of the intense heat, surface water has almost completely dried up. The suffering caused by the water shortage is beyond words."
He added, "Without water, the crops we grow keep withering away, so the residents' worries are immense."
As Choi mentioned, the water shortage in the Chudo area is severe enough that rationing has been implemented.
This is due to the winter drought followed by a severe lack of rain during the recent monsoon season.
According to Tongyeong, the cumulative rainfall in Sanyang-eup, where Chudo belongs, recorded 539.5 millimeters as of today.
This is about 59 percent of the average cumulative rainfall of 917.7 millimeters in Sanyang-eup from January to July over the past five years (2021–2025).
With heatwaves pushing daytime temperatures well past 30°C (86°F) on top of this situation, water sources are bound to dry up even further.
Given these circumstances, the city of Tongyeong, together with the Korea Water Resources Corporation, recently delivered 1,686 bottles of 1.8-liter bottled water to the residents of Chudo.
Considering that the drought is expected to continue, the city plans to provide additional supplies soon.
Previously, Choi said, "We are getting by only because Tongyeong City keeps supplying bottled water."
However, the distribution of bottled water cannot be a fundamental countermeasure against the drought.
In response, considering the characteristics of island areas that rely on small-scale water supply facilities, the city is promoting a "drinking water source development project."
With an investment of about 17.111 billion won, the city plans to complete a water supply connection project linking the mainland and the island by June 2028 to supply water to residents in island areas without metropolitan water systems, including Chudo.
The water pipelines scheduled for construction consist of a 6.2-kilometer submarine pipeline and a 7.8-kilometer onshore pipeline.
A city official stated, "We will do our best to protect the daily lives of residents in vulnerable areas amid the ongoing drought."
(Photo provided by Tongyeong City, Gyeongsangnam-do / Yonhap News)
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