Construction in Malakati and Vuaki
What an exciting time for the construction team! This
week fulfilled many of the goals of GVI, the villages, and the volunteers! A
great team of Staff members Ben, Katie, Jackie, and Moses, led Rosie, Chris C,
Chris P, Will, Alex, Meghna, and Greer (me!) to Vuaki and Malakati where we
were able to see all aspects of a successful water containment system
implemented.
In Vuaki, GVI started to set up a water containment system. The first step was to install fascia board on a house so we could attach proper guttering to it. The house was so tall that we had to use a strong system of teamwork and ladders to reach our target area! After the fascia board was hung, we hammered in gutter holders and finally attached guttering that will catch rainwater on the roof.
During the hot, beautiful week, we built a base for
the water tank which the guttering funnels into. Because it was so hot, we took
turns mixing cement. With the help of the village members, this went very
quickly and we were able to pour the cement and level it off. The villagers and
volunteers were very proud of the installed base and we wrote our names
together in the cement so the teamwork is immortalized. When a water tank
arrives, Vuaki and GVI will be one step closer to achieving the common goal of
5 litres of water per person per day.
The beautiful seaside village of Malakati had an exciting week, as they welcomed a 10,000 litre tank to their village. The construction team extended a 8 foot by 8 foot base to become a 10 foot square to accommodate the large tank. Once the base was extended and had dried, it was ready for the tank delivery. It was a very exciting morning at Tovuto base as the education volunteers, the marine research volunteers, and the construction volunteers worked together to load the massive tank into our beloved Waga nunu boat. Will, an expedition volunteer, documented the entire transfer of the tank from Tovuto Base to Malakati on video! It took about 45 minutes for volunteers Chris and Will, staff member Tai, and boat driver Moses to deliver the tank. We were thrilled that no shark attacked, the boat didn’t capsized, and that GVI successful reached Malakati. After staff intern Katie hopped into the tank to clean it, volunteer Rosie and Will also went into the 10,000 litre tank to help install the parts for the purifier. The purifier was the final step in the completion of the water containment system! Both GVI and Malakati are proud and excited by this great achievement.
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