January 2012 Haiti Water Project Home Page
Thanks to the many generous donations made by the people of Bethesda-by-the-Sea, we returned to Haiti January 13, 2012 to deliver and install the equipment for our solar powered water system. Read about the work we completed in our JOURNAL. Trenches were dug, pipe was installed, sinks were installed and the tanks, batteries and solar panel are in storage near the school. We will be returning to Verrettes later in 2012 to complete the installation when construction on second well and a storage room is completed.
After several attempts and meeting with well experts in the area, it proved to be impossible to install a submersible electric pump in the same well containing a hand pump. The water table is 17 feet below the ground surface which is also too deep to use a centrifical surface pump. The school is in need of a second well. A storage room needed to house the pressure tank, batteries and electrical panel must also be completed before the final equipment can be installed. Work is under way and we meet with the local people who will be working to accomplish these tasks so we can return and deliver the final solar powered system.

Good Samaritan school provides free education for about 100 children in Canneau, a village outside the town of Verrettes. They currently have a hand operated well which is the only clean drinking water supply for the village. People bring 5 gallon buckets to the school, hand pump the water and carry the buckets back to their homes. After making 3 visits to the school, we designed a solar powered pump system that will maintain a steady supply stored in an pressurized tank. The hand pump well will continue to be maintained should the electric system ever fail. The pressure tank will provide water pressure to deliver water to 2 sinks. One sink has been installed in the school and the other has been installed in the one room medical clinic.

We have faith the project will be completed in 2012.