Brazil and Caribbean Drought

I've previously written about the severe drought impacting Brazil, including the city of Sao Paulo. A July 1, 2015 article from CNBC indicates that the drought continues unabated. From the article:

Martha Lu, a 43-year-old resident of São Paulo and water activist, said that she has seen neighbors fight over water access during temporary water shut-offs. She said she had to counsel a woman who was disposing of human waste in plastic bags so she could avoid buying expensive mineral water to fill her toilet.

The problem is even more acute in the suburbs of the city, which tend to be poorer than the city itself.

"They have two hours of water on tap—the women don't sleep because the water comes in the early hours of the morning, at around 4 a.m.," Lu said of suburban areas. "They don't have water storage, so they have to stay awake because they don't know when the water is coming again. They stay up to collect it in buckets and try to do laundry, it's terrible."

Because Brazil is dependent on hydro power, the drought is driving electricity costs higher. The article cites critics of the government as stating that the severe problems could have been averted by instituting water rationing last year.

But it is not just Brazil. Catholic Online reports that drought is striking several Caribbean islands, including Cuba and Puerto Rico. From the article:

 From the eastern Caribbean island of St. Lucia, to Cuba to Puerto Rico, the Caribbean is suffering from what is described as a "bone-dry" summer. Crops are withering and dying in the worst drought to hit the region in five years. 

Forecasters fear that the situation will only worsen over the coming months. Reservoirs have dried up and livestock is dying.  

A slower-than-normal hurricane season in June has forecasters worried about a shorter rainy season, which translates to less rain to help refill Puerto Rico's thirsty Carraizo and La Plata reservoirs.

Discussing the situation in Puerto Rico, the article mentions:

Tens of thousands of people receive water only every third day under strict rationing. The National Guard there has been activated to help distribute water. Fines will be imposed on peoples and businesses that improperly use or wastewater. 

The current drought could grow even worse than the one in 2010 if the hurricane season, which ends in November produces little rainfall and the region enters the dry season with parched reservoirs.

"We might have serious water shortages ... for irrigation of crops, firefighting, domestic consumption, or consumption by the hotel sector," Cedric Van Meerbeeck, a climatologist with the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology says.

 Reports from Cuba indicate that 75% of the island is suffering from the drought, with loss of crops and cattle.