Residents of the Turkmen capital, Ashgabat, say that tap water has been switched off amid a heat wave that has pushed temperatures to more than 40 degrees Celsius in the shade.
Residents of Ashgabat's Parakhat district told RFE/RL on July 18 that the tap water in their homes had been switched off since 8 a.m.
In recent years, the drinking water situation in the extremely isolated Central Asian country has worsened, forcing water rations to be introduced in remote regions during summer.
Since last summer, tap water started being rationed in the capital as well, and last month authorities in Ashgabat reintroduced the measure.
The drinking water situation in remote regions where the average temperature in summer might reach up to 50 degrees Celsius is even worse.
In June, drinking water has been available in some regions only for about one hour in the morning and less than two hours in the evening.
On June 8, President Serdar Berdymukhammedov suggested the creation of a system that would allow the desalination of water from the Caspian Sea and its direct delivery to Ashgabat.
The extremely hot weather has also affected electricity supply to some regions, local residents told RFE/RL.