Drought-hit Spain cuts off WATER in millionaires’ playground home to celebrities and thousands of British expats: locals forced to use buckets to flush toilets during 9pm to 7am closure

Playground for millionaires The Spanish seaside resort, home to celebrities and thousands of British expats, was thrust into ‘third world’ conditions when local authorities cut off water supplies for half the day on Thursday.

Families in Sotogrande on the Costa del Sol were given just one day’s warning to fill buckets to flush the toilet and buy bottled water before local authorities turned off the taps.

The ultra-luxury resort – made up of large villas protected by electric gates and high hedges – is popular with royals, Russian oligarchs, celebrities and footballers.

Eddie Jordan, former Chelsea footballer Glen Johnson, former Genesis keyboardist Mike Rutherford and the BBC’s Nick Knowles are all said to be homeowners at the resort where a nine-bed villa costs £20,000,000.

Authorities announced the overnight cutoff of the water supply on Tuesday. The first lockdown took place from 9pm last night and deliveries were scheduled to resume at 7am.

But Rob Brummer, 66, a former ship director who has lived at the private gated resort for four years, said he was still without water at 10:30 a.m. today.

He said: ‘It came as a huge shock when we were only told this the day before. The entire communication around this has completely failed.

‘The whole of Sotogrande is made up of large villas and with five golf courses it uses a lot of water, but I lived in the Middle East for eight years and we never had any problems with the water supply.

‘There is a large school here with thousands of children who have to wash and brush their teeth every morning. How can they do that?

‘There has been a drought in Spain since 2013, but neither national, regional nor local councils have taken appropriate measures.

“The government of the area doesn’t care. They are far away and all we can do is complain and hope they listen.”

Restrictions imposed on Sotogrande’s 2,500 residents earlier this year include a ban on watering gardens, cleaning roads and driveways, ornamental fountains, washing cars and filling private swimming pools.

Expats on the Costa Del Sol have faced water restrictions, with some going without water for days.

Dozens of families in the village of Valle Romano on the Costa del Sol have been without water for five days.

Residents of the village, in the hills above the city of Estepona, have complained that they cannot shower, use the toilet or even keep their children clean.

Local resident Alba Woodard, 34, told The Olive Press: ‘Initially Hidralia (the water company) said the problems were due to burst pipes or pumps.

“They said they didn’t know when it would be fixed – it could take weeks.”

However, Hidralia later announced that the water outage was due to a ‘lack of water’ in the storage tanks.

Ms Woodard, a property manager born in Bristol but raised in Estepona, complained that it was ‘unfair to just cut off the water supply to all these houses’.

Football legend Lionel Messi also owns the MiM Sotogrande Club Marítimo hotel in the port, which has 45 loft-style rooms, all with views of the Mediterranean Sea.

King Charles and Princes William and Harry have also played in polo tournaments in Sotogrande, while Tony Blair, Mariah Carey and Rod Stewart are frequent visitors.

Sotogrande is also a Mecca for golfers, with the town home to four championship courses that are among the best in Europe. It is also one of the leading sports destinations in Europe with a range of water sports, tennis and polo.

In 2016, former England manager Glenn Hoddle put his £1.8 million villa with private pool and terrace on the market.

He said at the time: ‘I love the Sotogrande area and it has some of the most beautiful golf courses in Europe. I love golf and have enjoyed playing here for many years.

‘My favorite part of the house is the terrace. I spent many hours chilling and eating with family and friends. The views are beautiful and there is peace and quiet.

‘I have had the house as a holiday home for about 13 years, but I have the feeling that I now want to experience a different place.’

Despite its reputation as a playground for the rich and famous, it is also popular with ordinary expats. On an online expat forum, a family returning after ten years said: ‘Lots of expats and rich people who are down to earth and not flashy.

‘We are not rich. We are normal: I work in real estate and my wife has a small takeaway.

‘My children go to the local school, but all the children in the activities/clubs come from SIS. Nice children. Everyone here is here because they love the outdoors and doing things.”

Another said: ‘I’m not sure about the balance between Spanish and foreign residents, but it’s not what I would consider a typical Spanish town. But plenty of bars and a good immigrant community.”

The drought is also causing concern among international holidaymakers, with some families booking AirBnBs in Malaga urged to follow local restrictions.

A tourist wrote on The Facebook Group International People in Malaga: ‘My Airbnb host just sent a message that due to the lack of rainfall our apartment booked for July will have no water from 11pm to 7am. Does that sound normal?’

Spain’s tourism minister warned tourists because they use almost twice as much water as residents of the area.

Spokesman Arturo Berna said: ‘We are sensitive to the drought situation that Andalusia is experiencing and we are analyzing the implementation of a measure that affects rations and the efficient use of water.

“Any operation will necessarily have industry consensus.”