Rehabilitation Project
Upon completion of the project, our partner in the field reports...
When the Living Water Sierra Leone team arrived, 350 residents were dependent on an open well accessible by rope and bucket to meet most of their water needs. The community also utilized public taps, tube wells and other protected wells all located over 5 kilometers outside the community. Because of this, families were suffering from cholera, diarrhea and severe dehydration among other preventable water related illnesses. During the team’s stay, community members assembled a water committee who assisted the team with the water project whenever possible and provided any materials they had available. There are two health and human rights NGOs working in the area: Willamette Medical Teams and UNHCR. There is a local school, community center and several churches in the area whose staff now all have access to a safe water source. The local churches are: Jefferson Baptist Church, 7th Day Adventist Church, Jesus Is Lord Ministry and Catholic Church, all who will continue to share the Gospel with community families after the team leaves the area. Before leaving the community, the team provided the community with a Living Water Sierra Leone contact number in case their well were to fall into disrepair, become subject to vandalism or theft.
The Living Water Sierra Leone team provided School Sanitation and Household Education (WaSH In School) using a Student Led Total Sanitation approach, to addess: Disease Transmission, Germs, Healthy and Unhealthy Communities, Hand Washing-Proper Techniques and Water Saving Methods, Good-Bad Hygiene Behaviors, Disease Transmission Stories, Tippy Tap, Proper Care of Pump and Keeping the Water Clean. There were 53 adults and 32 children who attended the hygiene training. There were 32 ORS (Oral Rehydration Solution) spoons distributed which included sharing them with the elders of the community so that they can assist those affected during the night. The community is able to use ORS before going to the hospital. Emphasizing the Student Let Total Sanitation approach, the awareness of cholera and prevention of was addressed in detail. The team then showed community families how to dig a pit latrine, informing the community that openly defecating is a leading cause of cholera in the area. The community was engaged and was receptive to the information they learned.
The Living Water Sierra Leone team had an opportunity to meet with thirty-two year old community member and petty trader, Fatmata Turay, who stated, "The old source is an open well where we fetch water with a rope and a rubber. It is restricted by the owner which has forced the community to use less water and to fetch water from unclean sources. It has not been chlorinated. The new source is open to the community and is chlorinated and is clean to drink."
