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Queuing for fresh water: After the Arctic storm front, which has swept across large parts of the USA, people in Jackson, Mississippi stock up on water bottles.
Nothing comes out of the pipes in their houses anymore.
Markitta Moore, resident:
'I can't wash, I can't wash the dishes. My sister who lives in Flora has to bring me water so I can flush my toilet. I just had surgery on my right foot and need to take medication. Now I have to go outside to get water. I'm so mad at Jackson."
After the winter storm, the city experiences an acute water crisis, which started with the Christmas holidays of all times.
After temperatures in the southern United States fell below freezing for days, water pipes froze and ruptured in many places.
Water towers emptied faster than water companies could fill them up.
In Jackson, the infrastructure couldn't withstand the cold snap.
Normally, temperatures here average around ten degrees Celsius, even in December.
Danyelle Holmes, Volunteers:
“Of course we know Jackson's water supply has been a problem for 40, 50 years. This has now reached a climax where the infrastructure is crumbling. But the frozen pipes were a force majeure that cannot be prevented, and we cannot blame the City of Jackson for what happened at the hands of Mother Nature.”
Many of Jackson's 150,000 residents are angry.
They pay taxes for an ailing fresh water system that cannot withstand the regular extreme weather events.
As recently as August, water supplies to most of the city were cut off for several days when a water treatment plant was shut down due to flooding.
Hundreds of thousands of Americans battled an historic winter storm, piles of snow and power outages over the Christmas weekend.
Temperatures dropped below freezing in 48 states.
According to authorities, at least 50 people died.
