Over the last 2+ weeks we have heard about many children in the community being diagnosed with typhoid fever. At the same time rainy season has not really started and water sources are low or drying out. One of the workers described the situation that people are having to go farther than normal to get water and the water they are getting is not as clean as it should be. Here at Bokonzo the gravity-fed water system is daily running out by later morning or earlier. The level in the spring 1.5 miles away has dropped. Through the day we get water sporadically as water comes out of the spring. Later in the evening we\u2019ll start to get some pressure back as the demand has dropped and the level in the distribution tank starts to rise. <\/p>\n
The huge increase in typhoid diagnoses has to be related to the water issues as it is a water-borne disease. PRAY for: rain to renew the springs and water table; parents and children getting water that they would choose clean water; that parents would immediately take their children to the health center for care when they run a fever rather than waiting; that families would practice good hygiene so the disease does not spread to other family members; the health care workers as they care for these children. To answer a question, no, we don\u2019t see this as an epidemic, but there is a marked increase in the number of cases.
\n[written Sunday evening, 5\/8\/11]<\/p>\n
A follow-up Monday afternoon, 5\/9\/11
\nIT RAINED this morning. A nice long rain for over 4 hours. We have received about 30mm (1.2\u201d) THANKS LORD FOR ANSWERED PRAYER.<\/p>\n