LOS ANGELES — Southern California water officials took the unprecedented step Tuesday of declaring a water shortage emergency and restricting outdoor watering to just one day a week in parts of Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties — an action that will impact about 6 million people.
The outdoor watering restrictions would take effect June 1, according to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and apply to areas that are dependent on water from the drought-ravaged State Water Project.
“We are seeing conditions unlike anything we have seen before,” said Adel Hagekhalil, the district’s general manager. “We need serious demand reductions.”
