Update from Elliot

For the past couple of weeks Abbas and I have been working to bring clean water to the two communities of Lundamatwe and Ulonge. First we are getting a pump for the borehole by the Ulonge Primary School. Unfortunately the borehole near the Lundamatwe Primary School and the clinic is contaminated, so we have hired local workers to dig a new borehole. The hole needs to be dug down about five or six meters, to the water level, and then lined with bricks and cement. The top of the whole will then be covered and the area readied for the pump. The pictures below show the progress of the two sites: At the Ulonge Primary School the workers are constructing a base where the pump will sit. The pump does not sit right over the hole, but rather sits off to the side (where the bricks are) with a hose from the pump going down into the hole. See here for one in action. Near the Lundamatwe School and the health clinic a worker is digging the new borehole: The health clinic in the village has just received a new refrigerator. The refrigerator can run on either propane or electricity. The doctor told me he should be getting vaccines for tetanus, tuberculosis, measles, polio (not yet eradicated but last reported in the area two years ago), diphtheria, proteases, and hepatitis B. The World Health Organization helps to pay for these vaccines. The pictures below are of me working at Abbas’ parent’s home in the village taking sunflower seeds out of the flower. This is simply done by hitting the flower with a stick until all the seeds our out. Sunflower seeds are used to make oil, but, like America, children love to snack on them: