NEAH BAY — The community has only one more day of water left, said the Makah Tribal Council Tuesday.
Tribal officials declared a state of emergency Tuesday, alerting both state and federal officials to their situation, Makah Tribal Chairman Ben Johnson said.
The council hopes to have more answers Wednesday on how they will address both the immediate and long-term water needs of the Neah Bay community, he said.
“It’s kind of funny. We’ve got water all around us, we just can’t use any of it.”
While the village of Neah Bay is often plagued by water shortages in summer months, the lack of rain this year has depleted the tribe’s water source to about 250,000 gallons, Johnson said.
If it doesn’t rain in Neah Bay soon, the tribe will have to ship in water for its 1,800 residents, said Julie Johnson, the tribe’s director of intergovernmental relations.
Residents of Neah Bay were told to use only the minimum amount of water needed for daily use.
“You really have to watch what you’re doing and how you utilize it,” Johnson said.
