Mayor demands immediate solution to Rome's water woes

MILAN – Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi is demanding that the Italian government and Lazio region come up with a solution to prevent water rationing in the capital.

The governor of Lazio, which includes Rome, has ordered a halt to drawing water from Lake Bracciano, which has seen its levels dwindling, at midnight Friday. While the lake supplies only 8 percent of Rome's water, the impending cutoff has raised pressure on officials to come up with alternative sources to avoid water rationing in Rome.

So far, no solutions have been announced.

Raggi demanded intervention "tonight, by this evening, not tomorrow and not in a few days."

Scarce rain and chronically leaky aqueducts have combined this summer to hurt farmers in much of Italy and put Romans at risk for drastic water rationing.