‘WATER, WATER EVERYWHERE AND NOT A DROP TO DRINK’ by M. B. Akuhata-Brown Mr and Mrs Akuhata-Brown are at present teaching at a school in Western Samoa. In this article Mrs Akuhata-Brown describes one of their experiences there. Unbelievable but true. Here we are living in a lovely home with all (practically all—everything except an electric stove and a good water supply) the modern conveniences. This stilted concrete structure which we call home, is situated on the shores of the Pacific Ocean and its waters span out as far as the eye can see. Did I hear someone say, ‘Water! what is she raving about?’ Well just wait a sec… ! Attached or connected to this lovely home are three galvanised tanks, two of which hold a capacity of 60 gallons of water each. The other is a much larger one, capable of holding up to 60 gallons when the rains come ….

When the Rains Come When the rains come. Well, we waited two months. During these two months I was ready to move out to a more suitable spot either by a river (some 10 miles away) or to Apia where water is wasted daily by the bucketsful, through dripping taps, gardening hoses or just a ‘take-it-for-granted-attitude’. Water! There's always water in Apia, so why worry? But we stayed. We sent an S.O.S. to the Public Works Department to supply us with water. They arrived most promptly with six 40-gallon drums of water. These they proceeded to fill every three or four days. But horrors! They forgot to scour the shellite, kerosene and diesel out of the drums. Regardless of the precautions one takes with the boiling of impure water, the impurity took its toll. The consequent reactions were carbuncles, abscesses and stomach complaints. Yet we survived. The rain still didn't come. Then the Public Works Department forgot to come. The drums remained empty for days. Did I give up? No! The pioneering spirit in me excelled and I ventured forth to make the best of the situation. I proceeded to collect our buckets (two only), pots and containers, got into the car and travelled to the next village, where we had been told there was an excellent supply of river water. After explaining our plight to the owner, he agreed readily, with much concern and sympathy, to help us. Now we had water …. Yes we had water, but only a very limited quantity, so that I had to devise some method enabling us to bathe, drink and cook, without having to make a second trip in one day.

Rationing It Out For bathing—A swim in the sea first to remove the initial dirt, then one bucketful and 8–10 cupsful of water to be used per person. (Four bodies were involved.) The result was ‘tane’, a skin disease caused by excessive sea water and the lack of fresh water for washing afterwards. For cooking—One bucketful and two pots of water only. For drinking—The remaining containers. The water was duly boiled and stored in the refrigerator, to be drunk only under extreme emergency. The water-closet problem was solved readily with the use of seawater carried up in buckets. My only regret here is, the main pipe has been corroded, probably the sewerage system also, and will have to be replaced. A friend in need is a friend in deed, and our friends in Apia, who had heard of our sorrowful plight, would bring water in gallon bottles, ostensibly to relieve our dehydrated state, but secretly to assure themselves of getting a cup of coffee during their visit. By now the pioneering spirit was somewhat deflated. I informed our department that I would go on strike if the water-supply did not improve. Them … then ‘the rains came’. It continued for three glorious days, and the tanks, buckets and containers were filled to over-flowing. During the arid period, the Water Works Department were busy also, working on a reservoir constructed especially for us. Soon the pipe-lines were connected to our tanks, thus ending our water problems, except of course that every so often the engineer has still to be reminded in a note, ‘Please, pump