Islands facing drought

By JIMMY KALEBE
SMALL islands in Tewai-Siassi, Morobe, are facing drought conditions over the last three months, a ward councillor says.
Ward 13 Tuam Island councillor Robert Michael reported yesterday from the island that the most affected were Malai and Tuam islands.
“For the last three months, we have gone without rain and all our water wells have dried up,” he said.
“Last Monday and Tuesday, we experienced a strong winds that blew down most of our banana trees.”
Michael said the destruction caused by recent strong winds coupled with the hot and dry conditions meant food from gardens would start to run out over the next few months.
Tuam Primary School has yet to start classes because of a lack of water.
Michael said crops that were planted towards the end of last year had wilted or not grown well because of the dry conditions.
He said the islanders faced a similar situation in 2019 which caused the deaths of several people.
Michael said he had informed the district and the local level government about the situation being faced by the islanders.
Meanwhile, Tewai-Siassi MP Dr Kobby Bomareo said machines that converted salt water to fresh water would be brought into the country for use by such at risk communities.
Provincial agriculture officer Amos Buieba, who visited Tuam Island last week, confirmed that the islanders were in dire need of fresh water.
“Currently the islanders are digging for water,” Buieba said.
“Their water tanks are empty and water wells have dried up or are very low and the little water they have is not be fit for human consumption.
He said Tuam and Malai islands were the most affected as they were far from the main Umboi Island and they would need to travel to the main land to get fresh water.
“Travelling to the main land for fresh water means they have to go through rough seas and they need to have fuel to travel,” he said.
“That is another problem that they are faced with.”
Buieba said the soil was unfit to sustain crops because of heat.