No potable water in Buena Vista Village

Three weeks ago there was just too much water when the flood swept through the western part of the country causing the death of three persons and millions of dollars in damages. But today in Buena Vista Village in Cayo, the problem is not too much water but a shortage of it. A News Five team travelled to that village today to find out how the five hundred residents are coping with the lack of potable water in their homes and the inconveniences they face on a daily basis.

Marion Ali, Reporting
The problem arose when the rapid flood waters broke the main pipes that run water from Ontario Village a couple miles away into Buena Vista.

Ben Menjivar, Principal, Buena Vista Primary School
“Right now it’s been about a month when more or less before the flood we didn’t have any water here in the village.”

Luis Osorio, Repairman, Buena Vista Water System
“Yesterday when we went to check around ten o’clock with Mr. Middleton he told me that there had been leakages, a problem. We tried to fix it and the four nights we have been working, trying to se that there had been leaks, fixing that and so on. We did that.”

But even the repairs could not restore the damaged pump and since Sunday morning villagers have been getting an unsteady flow of water in their homes. They have had to find other means of surviving and taking care of their daily chores in ways that can be considered cumbersome at times.

Ben Menjivar
“Our children don’t have water here to drink as well and we don’t have water in our bathrooms. So that’s mostly what we have at the village right now.”

Marion Ali
“How do you get by?”

Ben Menjivar
“Well, at the moment we have some few tanks behind our school here. We try to gather some water from the rain ands for my children I usually tell them to bring water from their home so they can drink here at school.”

Olga Orellana, Treasurer, Buena Vista Water Board
“The people noh have water fi drink especially for wash. Some go dah water creek but di water creek noh good fi drink and fi wash because lot ah contamination in the water.”

Luis Osorio
“For the past weeks there hasn’t been water and there hasn’t been much of a salary and it affects us economic-wise. And for the villagers, it affects them in that there is no water to drink, to wash their clothes, cook and my hope is that after this has been mended, up to now—for right now—we hope that it stays and continues as long as possible and it becomes normal again as it was before.”

Ester Guerra, Resident, Buena Vista
“All di people come wash. I think that they will put the water because yesterday there was water in the pipe.”

Marion Ali
“How long you’ve been doing this?”

Ester Guerra
“Just when the river was full.”

Marion Ali
“Like a month?”

Ester Guerra
“Yeah, like a month.”

Marion Ali
“Dehn seh di water wah come back inna three weeks.”

Ester Guerra
“Ih wah come back because yesterday dehn had den dehn tek it again.”

Marion Ali
“And then what about cooking and bathing and so on. How you guys…”

Ester Guerra
“We have a tank at home and we get water when di truck come to deliver water we get water fi wash dishes and cook.”

But fixing the problem is a little bit easier said than done and according to one of the pump operators in Ontario Village, Alvaro Jimenez, it will be another few weeks before Buena Vista residents will enjoy a steady flow of potable drinking water in their homes again.

Alvaro Jimenez, Pump Operator, Ontario Village
“We di try work hard fi dat, fi mek everybody get full service.”

Marion Ali
“What’s left fi do?”

Alvaro Jimenez
“Weh left fi do is clean di vat up deh and do it and left it clean and den we wah get di pump fi installation ova deh fi get di full service. So afta dis we noh wah got no problem wid di water.”

Marion Ali
“Okay, so when you think dat wah come on-stream?”

Alvaro Jimenez
“More or less I hear about three weeks.”

Marion Ali
“So how you supply water to di village now? You have to turn on and turn off?”

Alvaro Jimenez
“Dehn have to turn on and off fi supply di village because we can’t do nothing.”

Marion Ali
“But afta dis ih noh wah be like dat?”

Alvaro Jimenez
“No, afta dis we wah get wah full straight connection fi everybody.”

In the interim, the P.U.P. Cayo Central Executive is currently supplying the village with washing water. Reporting for News Five, Marion Ali.