In Pakistan, MSF is working tirelessly to deliver safe water and emergency provisions to victims of the floods. In this video, MSF water and sanitation engineer Thomas Batardy talks about how field teams are getting drinkable water to people who need it, the challenges they face in doing so, and the persistent threat of water-borne disease in the flood-hit country.
Click here to read updates on MSF's activities in response to the floods by region
Transcript
Right now, here in Charsadda, the main priorities in terms of water are, one, to provide drinking water in the camps where displaced people have settled but where there is no infrastructure to supply safe drinking water and two, to provide drinking and chlorinated water in places where people have gathered, in towns, to prevent water contamination and to prevent disease in places where people are living in overcrowded conditions.
Ideally, I’d like to set up a 250-litre water container for every 10 or 15 tents and to come in with a truck and fill them up whenever needed, fill them up one after the other, and come back again the afternoon..
People are swimming in floodwater, water that’s picked up all the dirt and germs that were in the ground and in places where sanitation standards were lacking, people are bathing in contaminated water… obviously that carries a health risk for the people.