In the wake of the devastation caused by Typhoon Haiyan, access to drinking water is a major challenge for tens of thousands of people in the Philippines. Infrastructure has been destroyed and the sanitary conditions are appalling. Handicap International is today sending 50 filter pumps to its base in Cebu, at the heart of the worst-affected region.
Easily transportable to isolated areas, the Aquafilter pumps [1] recycle dirty water, rapidly making it fit for consumption. Each pump can filter up to 300 litres of water an hour. In a crisis context, the minimum daily ration of water per person is estimated to be 3 litres.
“With 50 pumps we will be able to provide safe drinking water for over 50,000 people every day,” explains Hélène Robin, head of Handicap International’s emergency response in the Philippines. “This will make an immediate impact for all those people currently suffering from the lack of water.”
The pumps are hand-operated and therefore do not require a supply of electricity or fuel, nor do they use any chemical products, making them ideal to use in challenging settings. The pumps were loaded today onto a plane leaving from London for the Philippines. On arrival they will be deployed by Handicap International’s emergency response teams.
5 tonnes of additional equipment to support disabled and vulnerable people
After sending 750 emergency kits to the Philippines last week containing basic needs items, a further 5-tonne load of equipment is being dispatched. This latest shipment contains kits to set up Focal Points [2] for disabled and vulnerable people, allowing our teams to provide basic healthcare and rehabilitation services.
Notes
[1] The Aquafilter pumps were created by a British organisation, the Safe Water Trust, to provide safe drinking water for isolated communities in developing countries.
[2] The Focal Point kits contain a 45m2 tent and everything needed to fit out a rehabilitation centre, including crutches, rehabilitation benches, and walking frames, along with the material needed to produce orthoses for injured people.
