God's plan, not ours

Today, we were excited with the anticipation of drilling the water well in Merger. When we arrived, we were glad to see that Blue Ridge Drilling Company had already started the process. The whole community came out to see; there was great excitement held by all. The thought of water bursting forth from the ground was too exhilarating to contain. As they dug deeper and deeper the suspense increased. They paused multiple times to check the cuttings (substances coming out of the ground). Shortly after, we saw water pouring out and we were all overjoyed! We all, however, couldn’t help but notice a rotten egg smell in the air and we were told that it was sulfur. After a short discussion with the drillers and project leaders, it was determined that the water was unusable due to the high sulfur content. The water was not drinkable and was too deep to access with a hand pump. The electrical pump that could be installed would only be good for 3 weeks, as the sulfur would be too corrosive. The cost of electricity needed for the pump would also be an issue. We had to make the difficult decision to not proceed with the drilling. Drilling in a different location was not an option due to the likelihood of hitting high-sulfur water again.

                The team, along with the community of Merger, were disappointed, heartbroken, and angry. We were emotionally and physically tired. This was one of our main projects and it ended in an unexpected and devastating way. The hardest part was watching the contractors clean off their equipment, the community walking away disappointed and knowing that this project is over. The plan for now is to have a case study of how we could help build a concrete water cistern. Since, we are nearing the end of our trip; we will not be able to witness this project implementation. Haiti Arise, however, will overlook the continuation of this project. We will be able to receive information and pictures regarding the process.

On a more positive note, we were able to see the construction progress of the church bathroom’s in Merger. We are looking forward to returning tomorrow to help with pouring cement. Although our main project was not successful, we are eager to help Merger in any way that we can. Stay tuned for more updates.

Bondye beniw (God bless),

The Team