With no heavy rains on the horizon, the drought Bermuda is presently suffering looks set to continue.

?No significant rainfall is expected in the next two weeks,? meteorologist Elizabeth Harris of the Bermuda Weather Service said yesterday.

BWS reported just 0.64 inches of rain fell last month which was the lowest precipitation rate for June since records began in 1949.

Last year?s total rainfall for June was 2.37 inches while in 2003, 5.03 inches fell during the month.

Ms Harris said one of the reasons there has been such little rainfall is the Bermuda/Azores high, which has been affecting weather systems.

She cautioned however that she was basing her rain predictions on long range models, which can be unreliable.

As residents search for water during the shortage, the Department of Consumer Affairs yesterday issued a warning to watch out for price gauging from water truckers.

?Consumer Affairs wishes to advise householders who believe they are being held hostage to price hikes, that the usual price for water is between $50 and $65, with the normal price being $60,? the department said in a Press release yesterday.

It said: ?While truckers are being stretched to their limit in their attempts to supply water to their customers, raising the price of water is considered an unconscionable act under the Consumer Protection Act 1999.?

Those truckers who are cheating the public face a fine of $10,000 or imprisonment for six months.

Minister in charge of Consumer Affairs Dale Butler added he did not want the public taken advantage of during the water shortage.

?We have had a number of queries,? Minister Butler said. ?We are not singling out anyone. But we are giving an early advisory before it gets out of hand. We don?t want to see any exploitation.?

Mr. Butler said truckers were reportedly charging as much as $100 per load as residents scramble for water while waiting lists stretch to some three weeks long.

Bermuda Water Works managing director Alan Rance said because we are in an extremely high period of demand, it is difficult to build up a healthy reserve in water reservoirs.

?We are just going from day to day right now,? Mr. Rance said. ?But as soon as we get some rain, there will be some natural replenishment.?

While many residents are going short, passengers and crew on three cruise ships consume enough water to fill 15, 20,000-gallon swimming pools every week, was told.

The , the and the each consume between 30,000 to 50,000 gallons of water every day when they are in Hamilton.

?Per ship they can get between 30,000 to 50,000 gallons per day, depending on the circumstances,? Mr. Rance said yesterday. ?But it?s important to remember the ships are on water conservation as well.?

And the cruise lines are not getting the water for free.

?Ships pay for the water,? Meyer Shipping spokesman Joe Simas said yesterday.

?The water hose is connected from the time they arrive to the time they leave.?

Mr. Simas said these ships take on water in Hamilton because they cannot produce their own supply ? which they do while at sea ? because the water in Bermuda?s harbours is not clean enough to be converted.

The only Bermudian port where a cruise ship can produce its own fresh water is at King?s Wharf in Dockyard because of its proximity to the open ocean, Mr. Simas said.

The ships conserve water while at port, he added, using water only for their central services, like bathing and doing laundry.

So-called ?megaships? like the anddo not draw on the Island?s water supply, however, as they have water tanks large enough to sustain themselves for longer periods of time.

Meanwhile on land, those located in areas higher than 150 feet above sea-level have been unable to get piped water due to a lack of pressure in the pipes, was told.

To fix the problem, Bermuda Water Works is reducing the flow of water to low lying areas like the City of Hamilton, Harbour Road and Point Finger Road.

?What we are doing is restructuring the flow to low lying areas to flow to higher areas,? Mr. Rance said. ?We are throttling the valves back to enable water to go to places it would not otherwise go. Flow and pressure are inversely proportional to each other.?

?There are sectors where we know the flow of water is always good,? he added.

One of these areas is around King Edward VII Memorial Hospital but it will not be affected as it has a designated line from Government.

KEMH facilities manager Gordon Ness said yesterday even though the hospital gets its water from the Prospect Reverse Osmosis Plant through a dedicated line there is still a conservation ethic at the hospital.

Mr. Ness said KEMH was obviously very aware of the fact they needed to conserve water, but said it was not possible for KEMH to ?cut back? on essential hospital services, like sterilisation, boiling and general supply.

Hotels are also being affected by the water shortage with the Fairmont Southampton hotel needing an emergency top-up of its water tanks three weeks ago when the hotel?s ability to produce its own water failed.

?We had a transformer blow up,? Norman Mastalir, general manager of the Fairmont Southampton said yesterday. ?The transformer was distributing electricity to our salt water treatment plant and sewage works.?

?We are going from day to day and hope to get some water soon,? Mr. Mastalir added.

He said the situation was the same at the Hamilton Princess.

Meanwhile, a laundromat in Shelly Bay has been forced to close because of a lack of water.

An employee of the Quickie Lickie Group of Laundries confirmed their six other branches are becoming very busy as people are bringing their laundry to them to conserve water at home.