Kundiawa Hospital shuts due to water woes

By ZACHERY PER
KUNDIAWA town has been without water for almost a month throwing vital public services into disarray.
In particular, important life-saving operations at the Kundiawa General Hospital had to be scaled down with staff attending to only critical emergency cases.
In a notice dated July 5, acting chief executive officer Mathew Kaluvia advised the people of Chimbu to seek medical assistance elsewhere as the hospital had shut down all theatre operations because of the water supply problem.
“This arrangement will be effective until the flow of water is restored to the hospital,” he said.
Kaluvia said the director of medical services at the hospital was also advised to discharge patients who were not critically ill at the wards.
He said that water was critical to patients and hospital staff.
“It is highly likely to have cross infections as staff have no water to take showers and do the laundry,” he said.
“We had to source water from water carts and from underground sources, but the supply is now running very low.”
The town’s water crisis is seriously affecting business operations.
Government and private agencies have been sending employees home early every day.
Residents with vehicles were seen rushing to the Wara Simbu River to have bath and do laundry.
The hotels and lodges have also run out of water.
The water shortage started when the Simbaiku Okondea clan turned off the main tap at the Urr water supply source which feeds the town.
Their protest was over the delay in the release of the K6 million they had won in court for the use of the water.
Provincial authorities and police had been talking to the clan members but nothing positive had come out of their discussions.