Mabaruma hospital without water
January 13, 2016 By
– huge debt being incurred for water supply
By Kristen Macklingam
Large sums of monies are being spent by the Region 1 (Barima-Waini) administration to have water delivered to the Mabaruma Regional Hospital after its well and pump stopped functioning sometime mid-December.
In an effort to ensure that everyday tasks at the facility were not affected, the regional authorities sought to have water brought in by ‘black tanks’.
However, this is proving to be a very costly method which could have been avoided had the well and pump be repaired initially.
Reports are that the pump began to experience problems and eventually the well (along with the pump) broke down.
At the time of this occurrence, an individual living in the area is said to have offered to fix the well and have it functional at a cost of just over $300,000.
However, this newspaper was told the offer was not accepted by officials, with them citing that the regional office did not have the monies.
Guyana Times understands that following this, a decision was made to source water from elsewhere which is said to cost an average of $15,000 per trip to the health facility.
Several trips have to be made on a weekly basis since one trip can only facilitate two black tanks being transported to the hospital.
As a result of this, hundreds of thousands of dollars have already been expended for the supply of the much needed water and the cost continues to mount.
When contacted on Tuesday Regional Chairman Brentnol Ashley told this publication that he could not confirm if the well and pump at the hospital has not been working for almost a month now.
“I am not sure of the accuracy of the time factor of the one-month span with no water supply but I know it was brought to my attention that the hospital well has been giving some problems. I would want to say that maybe the pump was not suitable for the well… you know the spring, when the water comes and when it is finished it eventually start to pump things like slush and so forth which would cause the pump to have some problems,” he explained.
Ashley noted that in the interim it was decided water would have to be sourced for there to be a continuity of service at the hospital.
This newspaper was also told that the regional office and the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) have reached an agreement whereby the utility company would facilitate ‘extra pumping hours’ to the hospital to assist in the situation.
“So that besides the well, which we are working currently to have corrected, we will get extra water to the hospital so that it can be supplied… There is a normal pumping schedule by the GWI and we would have written to ask them to give extra pumping schedule to give water to the hospital. Also we would have engaged persons who have been providing services to look at the well,” the regional chairman posited.
However, he did say that until these plans can materialise, water being continuously transported to the Mabaruma Regional Hospital will prove to be a costly venture.
“It is going to be costly for that to be done. We are working assiduously to have the matter rectified. Currently water is not being sourced through black tanks to my knowledge and if it was done the sourcing of water was not on a daily basis if it was happening,” Ashley added.
Meanwhile, concerns continue to be aired about the ‘day-to-day’ management of the region since persons have noticed more of the absence of the Regional Executive Officer (REO) Leslie Wilberg.
“The REO has been out of the region within recent months of his appointment very frequently and so there are concerns about the day-to-day management of the region since the deputy REO was sent on leave,” one person said. (kristenm@guyanatimesgy.com)
January 13, 2016 By
