ITT engineers provide training on the operation of a new potable water filtering system in La Libertad, Honduras.Local Mercy Corps staff install filter candles on new potable water filtering system.The following chronicles the coordinated global effort to make an impact in such a short amount of time:
Day One - Arrival in Tegucigalpa
When the call came in for help from Honduras, ITT quickly worked to arrange shipping of two portable water treatment systems to Tegucigalpa, Honduras from Bangkok, Thailand, where they were being stored. The equipment, which ITT sent via air freight, arrived within eight days to Tegucigalpa. Upon its arrival, Mercy Corps transported the equipment to a staging area in Siguatepeque, which would serve as a base of operations.
Day Two - Staging in Siguatepeque
Before installing the equipment in La Libertad and Meambar, ITT engineers conducted a brief, half-day training course for five local operators from Mercy Corps and ITT. The initial training, which took place at a nearby river, gave them practical training at every stage including site and water source selection, set up, operation, basic maintenance and distribution of water. Once Mercy Corps and ITT representatives completed the training, the team closed down for the day and prepared to head to La Libertad in the morning.
Days Three and Four - Installation in La Libertad
When the team arrived in La Libertad, the local people were taking what raw water they could from a dirty, muddy stream. But the raw water was high in particulates, bacteria and fecal contaminants, so they were boiling the water and trying to use as little as possible. It was clearly a desperate and unsafe situation.
Prior to the team's arrival, the local community, with Mercy Corps' help, had built a platform to hold the water tank. Unfortunately, the platform was a little too small. The team quickly recruited some local workers to help extend the platform an additional three and a half feet, which took a little over an hour to complete.