Category: Access to Safe Water

Access to Safe Water

CATASTROPHIC FLOODING HAS OCCURRED IN EAST AFRICA 2024

CATASTROPHIC FLOODING HAS OCCURRED IN EAST AFRICA AND LUHOMBERO WAS NOT SPARED.

Over 150 people have died in the floods in Tanzania and the “once in a century” rains continue to fall.

Over the past weeks, the torrential rain has fallen heavily over Luhombero. It has caused widespread flooding, loss of food crops, destruction of homes and now, illness in the village.

The village dispensary is primitive to say the least, and people are beginning to suffer from diarrhea, stomach ailments, malaria is back, and hunger is stalking the village lanes.

The village truck needs maintenance and repair, houses need repair. While cities and large towns will receive aid relatively quickly, Luhombero, being far down a terrible back road will be one of the the last to be helped. The loss of their food crops is catastrophic.

As you can see, their lives are presently devastated. Their need is very great. If you could see your way to donating toward the village, please do so here.

These videos are even more shocking.

Flooding in the village.

Turn your sound down before listening to this

Hopefully the water will rise no further and damage the new “flood resistant” school which they worked so hard to build.

Every little bit helps; every dollar goes a long way in Tanzania. If you are able, please donate to help Luhombero.

Luhombero is the poorest and most remote parish in the Mahenge Diocese of western Tanzania. It lacks electricity, potable water, indoor plumbing, internet, policing, medical equipment, medicine and economic diversification.

Access to Safe Water

Daily life in Luhombero

If you live in North America, it is hard to comprehend the level of difficulty people face in Luhombero, to do the simplest of things; like boiling water for dinner. Wells with potable water are quite a distance away, and women and children spend a significant portion of their day collecting water and walking it home or carrying it on a bike.

Some families take 10 minutes to 15 minutes to each a well. These wells were made by the government but there are not enough of them to service the population. Sometimes it is difficult to fix such wells because the machines used to drill them are very primitive. They cannot dig very deep into  the earth. They normally make such wells alongside the basin where the depth to get water is not so deep.

The two wells in the parish, if they are renovated, can help to serve the nearby families. They need the pumping machines to be repaired. To fix them would require approximately $300-to-400 USD per well. There are machines which can make bore holes to have water but they cost up to $3,000 USD to order.

Some local people can make simple bore holes. It is the matter of negotiation. It can be $500 USD up to $1,500 USD, depending on the depth they dig, for these low-tech wells. So fixing our two parish wells is the most logical approach to help the people with the water shortage.

The “waiting room” for medical attention in Luhombero is under the shade of a tree. Below, you see women and children gathered, awaiting their turns at the small clinic.

Schools in Canada and the US are free. Schools in Kenya are not. Most families have to pay to send their children to school, and make huge financial sacrifices in order to do so. Lots of bright children must drop out of school because their family cannot afford the school fees.