By Hugh Tozer | Project Manager
Project 1007 Update
The Justinian Hospital, the largest public facility in northern Haiti, serves over 700,000 people from Cap Haitien and the surrounding community. Years ago the municipal water system failed, forcing the hospital to rely on its small well and an electric pump that was often idled by power outages. In early 2007, damage to the hospital’s electrical supply limited to well pump to running only when the hospital had enough money to run its diesel generators. Medical staff and patients have lacked water for basic hygiene, and the water they had was often contaminated. Polluted groundwater entered the water distribution system through deteriorated pipes.
Volunteers with Konbit Sante have coordinated support from Global Giving, the United Nations, and Rotary International to improve the water system. The first construction project focused on eliminating a major source of contamination, a deteriorated pipe from the well to the storage tank that passed through a waste pile. In 2006, a team of local workers installed a seamless plastic pipe, encased in concrete. The type of pipe was not readily available in Haiti, so Konbit Sante shipped it along with medical supplies in a container.
Work in the summer of 2008 focused on maximizing the output of the existing well. Volunteers and hospital staff installed a new electrical service for the existing well. The improvements included a backup power supply and equipment that allowed the pump to run on generator and the municipal power supply. Hospital staff were very pleased with the improved supply, but the volume was still inadequate for all the various needs.
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