Clean, piped water
ABOUT 200 villagers at Natalau, Sabeto in Nadi celebrated when they were connected to clean, piped water in 1980 thanks to the American government which gave bridging finance for a village water supply project.
An article in The Fiji Times on September 12 that year stated the project was officially opened by the US embassy’s South Pacific regional development officer Robert Craig.
Mr Craig and the water engineer western, Anthony Lake, were accorded Fijian ceremonies of welcome and treated to lunch as a gesture of thanks by villagers who benefitted from the project.
The US government gave Natalau villagers $5000 to put forward as their contribution for the project, which was estimated to cost between $15,000 and $21,000.
Speaking at the welcome ceremony, the landowners’ leader, Apisai Tora, said the money from the US enabled construction of the supply system.
Outlining water problems faced by the villagers, Mr Tora said that in the 1930s the village had a well and that was the only source of water.
“Then something happened and a number of village youths began dying from what was thought to be contaminated water in the well,” he said.
In a single week between 20 and 30 young men and women died.
He said health authorities held the turaga ni koro (village headman) responsible and tried him for neglect of duty, alleging that he had failed to ensure the well was always clean.
“The people here became very wary, and indeed frightened of digging another well,” Mr Tora said.
He said villagers relied on the generosity of Fijian neighbours of Indian descent who allowed them to draw water from their wells before deciding to seek help from government’s rural development program for the installation of a better and permanent water supply.