Drought

Despite being surrounded by millions of leagues of deep blue sea and having 60 inches of rainwater each year Bermuda is close to running out of water. At home we have already been forced to order 13 tanks of additional water so far this year and it’s not even summer yet.

Not withstanding Bermuda’s island status, water is a scarce and valuable commodity. With a solid limestone rock base piping water is impossible. There is no tropical rainy season or fresh water lakes on the island and Bermuda has just a few reverse osmosis plants and ground water gathering lenses. Whitewashed house roofs collect rainwater and funnel it into underwater tanks (there are 21,000 on the island).

The tank under our house is the size of an Olympic swimming pool, yet a month or so ago it was bone dry, much to the surprise of our landlord, and also my other half when I appeared at the bathroom door one morning covered in bubbles but with not even a drop of water to rinse it off.

The island is already 10 inches below it’s average rainfall for the year, although thankfully we have seen some showers these last couple of days but use of the washing machine has to be limited and the dishwasher has once again become me. Frustratingly as I hold my hands under a dry kitchen tap I can see the sea, well at least it’s not far to walk if I need a bath.