Santana, Corozalito and St. Ann’s – they are 70 to 80 year old villages along the Old Northern Highway with a combined population of about 300 people. Old communities on an old and disused road, but they will be sharing a new water system. For those of us who live in larger communities, running water in the house is something we take for granted, but for these villagers who have to gather their water from ante-diluvian hand pumps – it is a genuine luxury. That’s why there was genuine excitement in these villages yesterday when ground was broken for the water system. Here are reviews from a few residents.

Theresa Godoy, Chairlady – Corazlito
“Back there where we live from we small we used to get water from a hole named Blue Hole, from I the grow up as a lil gial. So this which we are getting here makes me happy. We does wash, drink out of it. Where we used to go to wash, after we finished doing clothes, we used to bring a bucket to take home about three miles.”

Erminda Reid, Chairlady – Santana
“I have to travel like quarter of a mile to get water. In this village we only have like four water pumps working, four hand pumps. The others are deteriorating, they are rotten and then the parts are hard to get, you can’t buy the parts. You have to go and beg from other villages to see if they have one. I don’t think anybody feel more happy than myself. I have waiting for this from Lucky Strike and Rockstone Pond got their water connected, we were promised to be connected from then. I was disappointed when we were not but I didn’t give up. I didn’t give up and I waited for SIF because they promised me faithfully as soon as funds were available they would consider us and reality is here today and I don’t think anybody else is happier than myself.”

Richard Swift, Chairman – St. Ann’s
“Like how this water the come now, it will be much easier because maybe I could use it to even drink it.”

Hon. Edmund Castro, Area Rep.
“It was really sad to see some of the older guys such as Mr. Cunningham who, Mr. Cunningham is about ninety something years old and he has to walk to the pump which is maybe 100 yards away from his house to pump water and go back to his house. So a system like this will be, the villagers in this area are very very happy to see that hopefully by April-May of next year they will be able to stay in their homes and just turn on a faucet.”

The villages will get a 20,000 gallon water tank with a pump-house, chlorinator and a network of pipes that will fan out into the villages. The cost will be $920,000 with contribution of $120,000 in labour from the communities.