Making do with a broken water pipe

By Aruna Lolani 08 July 2017, 12:00AM

When seeking access to water is a problem you face every day, it’s difficult to be positive about life and the future. 

Li’a Siala from Satuialii, Fasito’o tai will tell you all about their ongoing struggles trying to find and store water.

“We just moved back here to the forestry area this morning because we’ve heard that the taps are on again.

“Those are the only times we can afford to stay here, knowing that we will have some water.”

But what you don’t know is the struggle Lia and her family goes through just to get that water.

Village Voice found Lia with her children fetching water from a disconnected plumbing pipe. They were busy filling up little buckets with water even though the water was only trickling.

“We came this morning face to face with this situation.

“People just come here, disconnect this water supply pipe, get their water and then they leave without fixing the pipes again.

“So they just leave the water running out and it’s sad because they should know that they’re wasting water. They should think about that.

“So this is a major problem that we are facing right now.

“I don’t blame people for doing this because the water doesn’t run strongly enough to allow water to come through the taps.

“Sometimes people go with wheelbarrows to the other side just to find water supply pipes.”

According to Lia, all the families staying in the forestry area are experiencing the same situation but some are luckier than others because some of the families have received help with water tank donations.

“And I think that’s the only thing that we don’t have that I’m requesting for help with; a water tank to store our water.

“That’s why we always go to the village inland when there’s no water but we wish we could stay here in our own home.

“Sure the water is on, but only on a temporary basis and when the water goes off, we leave to go back inland.”

By Aruna Lolani 08 July 2017, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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