MANILA, Philippines?Like an oasis, a broken Maynilad pipe on a road in Malabon City attracted dozens and dozens of residents desperate for a bath after nearly a week without water.

The residents, most of them squatters along M. H. Del Pilar Street, took matters into their own hands early Wednesday by destroying part of a Maynilad pipe and letting water gush out, authorities said.

At about 3 a.m., the neighbors queued at the freely flowing water, lugging huge plastic containers and pails to collect water.

But some couldn?t endure the wait and took a bath right on the street.

Avoiding arrest

?It?s been three days since I took a bath,? a woman said, smiling as she was interviewed by a GMA 7 crew.

But the free water did not last long. A team of policemen came as dawn broke and the residents scampered away to avoid arrest, said Leonardo Padua, Malabon?s public information chief.

?The Maynilad people are already there and they?re fixing the pipe,? Padua said. ?It?s understandable that people are getting impatient because there?s no water, but we can?t really allow the situation to turn chaotic.?

Classes suspended

The water shortage has also disrupted classes in Malabon.

St. James Academy, a private Catholic school located across the Malabon City Hall, suspended classes on Wednesday because of the water rationing.

Padua said there was no word as to how long the suspension would last.

In the meantime, he said the city government was doing all it could to provide free water to residents. Ten fire trucks giving water rations go around the city on a 24-hour basis on orders of Mayor Canuto Oreta.

Padua said a Maynilad officer had informed them that the water supply was expected to improve in the next few days, although not drastically.

?I was told that the Angat Dam had risen by half a meter, so, for example, those with six-hour water [rationing] will get just four hours, and so on,? he said.

Help for poor communities in Quezon City and Caloocan is also on the way.

Free water

Chinese-Filipino fire volunteers and personnel of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) on Wednesday assisted Maynilad in distributing free water to ?waterless? residents.

Since Wednesday, the MMDA and the Text Fire Brigade have made available 107 fire trucks to help Maynilad distribute free water to residents affected by the water crisis, the MMDA public information office said in an advisory.

As early as 7 a.m., some fire trucks were first deployed to Barangay Paltok, Roosevelt Avenue, Quezon City, where people lined up to fetch water, said Gerry Chua, head of the Text Fire Brigade.

Of the 107 fire trucks and tankers, seven came from the MMDA while 100 from the Text Fire volunteers. The MMDA said the water came from fire hydrants all over Metro Manila.

MMDA General Manager Robert Nacianceno said he met on Tuesday with Chua and Maynilad administrator Herbert Consunji and agreed to offer their manpower and equipment to distribute water to areas worst-hit by the shortage.

Also affected by the shortage in his own home, Nacianceno advised Metro Manila residents to conserve water by using tabo (dipper) in taking a bath and avoiding using high-pressure water hoses.

?We have to wait for water to come to our residence. What we do when it?s raining, we place basins outside our house to catch rainwater,? he said.