Saving and using water wisely is what village elders are telling women and children as water sources dry up on Manus Island.
In Hahai village of Pak Island people are rationing water after a two month dry spell.
Water levels in tanks are going down and people are using water only in the mornings and in the evenings.
A villager elder told LOOP News that people use well water for laundry and other household chores but not for consumption.
This is because of high salinity levels in the water taken from dug out wells.
They fear fresh water will run out in the next two months if it doesn’t rain.
Meanwhile the Manus Disaster office has reported that 12 Local Level Government areas have been affected.
Bush fires and the lack of rainfall have created a shortage of food and water.
They also fear diseases like typhoid as a result of water shortage.