JOHANNESBURG – Dry taps have become a daily frustration for residents of Johannesburg, a city hemorrhaging more than a third of its water supply, or an estimated 655 million liters a day, through burst pipes.

“I feel really broken,” 17-year-old student Thandani Masangu said after spending three hours wheeling empty containers on a trolley through the peeling and trash-strewn urban neighborhood of Hillbrow searching for water. His block has had none for more than three years.

Masangu and his friend Raymond Maleka spotted a tank being refilled by a municipal water truck; a security guard told them there was only enough for residents of the adjacent tower-block.