- Fourth water-supply failure from the Aposelemis Dam in just five months.
- Output dropped by 40% from 300 to 180 m³/hour — a daily loss of 2,880 m³.
- DEYAH uses alternative water sources and offers technical aid.
- Mayor Kalokairinos: “We can’t keep living like this.”
- Residents thanked for saving water, but told the crisis cannot continue.
Water Running Dry at the Worst Time
Heraklion is once again struggling with water shortages — the fourth such crisis in just five months at the Aposelemis Dam. A new mechanical failure at the treatment plant has cut supply from 300 m³/hour to 180 m³/hour, a 40% drop that equals 2,880 m³ of water lost every day in the height of summer.
Initially, the plan for August was to increase output to 420–450 m³/hour. Instead, Heraklion is getting less than half. Mayor Alexis Kalokairinos summed it up:
“We can’t keep living like this.”
DEYAH Steps In as OAK Falters
The Heraklion Water and Sewerage Authority (DEYAH) has tapped alternative water sources and even offered technical help to OAK, which manages the dam. But there is still no clear timeline for repairs.
Kalokairinos publicly thanked residents for their “responsible” water use but stressed that “this situation cannot be allowed to get worse.”
Without a quick fix, several areas face serious supply problems: En tos Ton Teichon, Poros, Analipsi, Kipoupoli, Ethnikis Antistaseos, and Pateles are most vulnerable, with milder shortages expected in Nea Alikarnassos, Mastampas, Atsalenio, Theriso, and Agia Aikaterini.
A Dam with a Record of Trouble
The Aposelemis Dam, Crete’s largest water project, has been supplying much of the island’s north coast since 2012. But repeated malfunctions have now become a pattern, raising doubts about the system’s long-term reliability.
At a time when demand is highest, every outage affects homes, businesses, and public services. For residents already cutting back, the frustration is not just about water — it is about trust in the infrastructure meant to deliver it.
