A crisis is unfolding in South Australia, as residents run out of water amid a record dry summer and long delays in water deliveries.

Adelaide Hills residents have been forced to turn to their communities for help as unprecedented dry conditions across the state run water tanks and dams dry.

Among them is Meadows resident Leah Craig, whose household ran out of water in early February.

When Craig noticed she was running low on water, she contacted her regular water supplier – who told her the wait would be up to eight weeks.

“I went into a panic and was calling everywhere, and everywhere was saying the same thing – ‘I’m so sorry we’re not taking on new customers’ or the ‘books are full’,” Craig said.

Local water delivery companies are unable to keep up with the increased demand, leaving people like Craig waiting for more than a month.

As the household tank ran dry, Craig and her family thought they were going to have to move somewhere else.

“We were considering leaving our house, we were going to have to move and the only reason that we didn’t is because our neighbour heard about us and he helped us.” Craig said.

“He was like, ‘look, I can put the hose over the fence and try to help you out’.

“If it wasn’t for our neighbours we wouldn’t be living here. They literally came to the rescue.”

SA Environment and Water Minister Susan Close said four more water carting providers had since registered through SA Health to help resolve the bottleneck in carting services.

But the delivery issues come as the Bureau of Meteorology reports that 2024 was Adelaide’s driest year since 2006. The city’s rainfall for the year was nearly 200 millimetres below its average of 540 millimetres.

January and February have continued the trend, with below average rainfall across much of South Australia.

Last weekend, the weather bureau issued another warning for elevated fire danger across SA and much of south-eastern Australia. A cold front was expected on Sunday, but unlikely to deliver much rain.

The Craigs had tried to save as much water as possible, but it wasn’t enough to stop their supply running dry.

“I grew up in the hills my whole life. I know all about conserving water, bucket showers,” Craig said.

“I think we’ve maybe watered the garden once or twice since November … so that’s obviously not enough.”

Homes are not the only places feeling the dry conditions, with some Adelaide Hills schools struggling without a mains water supply.

Craig’s daughter’s school, Mylor Primary, had been forced to close on multiple days as it has had no water.

“It’s still not quite sorted out,” Craig said.

She said the school was using portable toilets and was working with the Adelaide Hills Council and the state Education Department to find a longer-term solution.

Last week, the SA Government announced emergency collection points throughout the region to help residents until much needed rain can fill the empty tanks.

Water is available from three emergency collection points – Ridge Road, Woodside, Koennecke Road, Sandergrove and Peggy Buxton Road, Brukunga – from 7am to 7pm every day of the week.

A fourth emergency water collection point opened last week in McLaren Vale, as the Fleurieu Peninsula grapples with similar conditions.

So far, about 100 people have collected 110,050 litres of water from the emergency bulk water collection sites.

Locals who use the collection points must have their own containers and transport for water, making it difficult for many to collect enough.

“I don’t own a truck to transport it. What am I going to do, put them in a few tubs? Unless I’ve got a vehicle that can collect water, it’s not really helpful,” Craig said.

Further, the collection points are only for emergency household and domestic use – leaving livestock, crops and gardens in the lurch.

“Our garden, which is a very old garden – it’s well over 100 years old – it’s shrivelling up,” Craig said.

The lack of rainfall has left properties dry, raising concern for the increased fire risk and locals calling for better planning for such conditions.

“Especially on high fire risk days, everything is as dry as a bone, if anything was to happen … there needs to be a lot more planning,” Craig said.

As dry conditions continue into autumn, the National Council for Fire and Emergency Services (AFAC) has advised of an increased bushfire risk in parts of SA, Western Australia and Victoria.

Some relief may be on the way, with rain forecast for much of the region throughout mid-March.

“It’s really sad to see how destructive the weather has been. We’ve been really affected by it,” Craig said.

This article first appeared in InDaily. Read the original here