‘They can’t drink water. They can’t flush the toilet’: low rainfall in the Adelaide Hills has left thousands on the brink

Robyn Saunders says the water shortages in the Adelaide Hills are the worst she has seen in the 30 years she has lived there. Photograph: Sia Duff/The Guardian

Across the Adelaide Hills and other parts of South Australia, thousands of residents are running out of water – or have already run out – as drought conditions bite.

“They can’t drink water. They can’t flush the toilet. They can’t wash their hands, their linen,” Adelaide Hills resident Robyn Saunders says.