We Spent Over RM100 On Bottled Water & Essentials During Water Cuts. It Was Frustrating!
How much did you spend on these necessities?
By Yap Wan Xiang — 25 Jul 2024, 12:43 PM
On Tuesday, 23 July, residents of Kuala Lumpur and Selangor sighed upon hearing the news of water cuts affecting their areas
The first day was probably manageable for most, but fresh water from the taps started running dry by the second day, especially for those living in landed houses.
This meant no access to drinking water, cooking at home became impossible, and it was unfortunate for those who had clothes that needed washing for a special occasion.
At one point, I made a mess on the floor and had to mop it. I dreaded doing that, fearing the water in our cistern would run out.
By Wednesday noon, 24 July, my family and I decided to buy bottled water before we died of thirst. We had planned a week ago to cook Japanese curry to celebrate one of our birthdays, but sadly, we had to put that off. Let's hope our ingredients can survive another day.
To stay hydrated, we spent RM30 on bottled water for our family of five. We could have spent much less if we had managed to purchase the 5L-6L bottles, but they were sold out at two mini-marts we visited in Klang.
I spoke to the employees at the mini-marts and was told that the 5L-6L bottled water would only be restocked today, 25 July. They mentioned that these products ran out on the first day of the water cuts.
We also visited a hypermarket and discovered that the same 5L-6L bottles were sold out there as well. Additionally, we spent about RM80 on dry shampoos, wet wipes, and some packaged food that does not require cooking.
A hypermarket in Klang had sold out 5L-6L of bottled water on Wednesday, 24 July.
Image via postimg.ccThat got me thinking... how much have people in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor unnecessarily spent on bottled water and other necessities to get through the water cuts?
We put out a poll on X to find out.
One of our colleagues from HR told me that she spent RM50 on bottled water, in addition to another RM200 on other necessities to get through the two-day water cut at her household.
"I had to buy meals from outside because we couldn't cook from home without water. So the total spend on food was over RM200, and it was just simple food like chicken rice.
"We had to use paper plates, cups, and plastic cutlery because we couldn't wash anything in the kitchen sink. But that's not so bad because we already had stock from the last time they cut water," said the Taman Tun Dr Ismail resident.
She also mentioned that the water cuts hit her family hard because she has young children, including a toddler who is still in diapers.
Another colleague shared that a mini-mart near his place in Seputeh had ordered a lorry load of bottled water in response to the rising demand.
A mini-mart employee in Seputeh said the store ordered a lorry load of bottled water in response to the rising demand.
Image via SAYS