Water truck owners and drivers are complaining that limited access to water is keeping them from servicing their customers.

While in past years the truckers have been able to fill their tanks at any time of day, the pumps are now all shut by 8 p.m.

Last night, the Bermuda Water Truckers Association (BWTA) met in hopes of coming up with a strategy to tackle the growing problem.

BWTA leader Russ Ford said that the organisation has a good working relationship with Government, but that not enough has been done to prevent the annual water shortages.

"This is an issue we have been putting up with for years and we thought we had made some headway after last year," he said.

"Now we have even less water to draw from then we did last year."

Mr. Ford said that homes and businesses on the east and west ends of the Island are more affected by long periods of drought, but homes across the Island are already suffering this year.

According to the Bermuda Weather Service, the Island has seen only 16.11 inches of rainfall so far this year, around four inches less than usual.

While some rain is expected in the next few days, it's still too early to tell how much difference it would make to the water tanks.

Mr. Ford said that the rush to order water struck earlier this year than most, and combined with the limited availability of the water, customers will have to wait longer to fill their tanks.

"It's the customers that are feeling the worst of it," he said. "There are more than enough water trucks available. It's the shortage of water available that's the problem.

"Some people say we need more water trucks on the road, but that would make the situation even worse."

Right now, water trucks need to fill up at facilities at Prospect, which is open between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., or at Tyne's Bay, which closes at 8 p.m.

"The plant at Prospect used to be open 24 hours," said Mr. Ford.

"Now, after 8 p.m., or even before that on some days, there is no water supply,"

"We need to work out how to solve this problem."

Another aspect of the problem, according to Mr. Ford, is that many people wait until the tank is empty before they order water, turning every order into an emergency.

"People need to check their tanks and not wait until it becomes an emergency situation," he said.

"We really want to help, but we can't go from one end of the Island putting out fires.

"Please, call ahead or put out a standing order."

He also called on the public to be careful to conserve water to help reduce the strain on the water providers.