People of Kissi drink from holes near refuse dump

For close to two decades, the people of Kissi, a farming community of about two thousand (2,000) inhabitants have been compelled to rely on dug holes near a refuse site for drinking water.

The choice of the area near the refuse dump is because it is on a small hill, allowing for easy flow of rainwater into the dug holes when it rains.

This dangerous and unhealthy development is because a bore hole meant to supply the community with quality water has not been repaired almost 20 years after it broke down.

The situation has compelled most of the people in Kissi, in the Komenda Edina Eguafo Abirem (KEEA) district to travel almost nine (9) miles in search of relatively clean water at a price of 2,000 cedis a bucket. Those unable to afford therefore rely on the water from the holes for their livelihood. But water from the dug holes is not free either, as consumers have to pay before they are served.

“This is big business. Most of these boys you see here either own one of these holes or have been hired by the owners to watch over them for a fee,” a middle aged woman who paid 1,000 cedis for two buckets told the dailyEXPRESS.

The creamy- coloured water comes into the holes in two ways: either from the soil after the digging has been done or rain water sloping through the refuse sites.

“I’m not too sure drinking water from this hole could create any health problem, this is what most of us here in the town have been relying on for our daily activities. Water in any of these holes either comes directly from the soil or rainfall” was the reaction of one of the young men drawing water from a hole as he brushed aside any fear of a health hazard.

The Village Infrastructure Project in an attempt to help the community and prevent the breakout of diseases or infections donated two big polytanks to the community in 2004. But according to the village folk, the tanks have been empty and never used since the donation some three years ago.

A Cape Coast based NGO, the Abusua Foundation worried about the plight of the Kissi people has begun an exercise to sensitise the community on the dangers associated with drinking water from the holes, unpurified.

The Chief Executive of the Foundation, Simon Tsike Sossah told the dailyEXPRESS “we will teach them simple methods like using cotton to purify the water before drinking.”

The Abusua Foundation is being assisted by an American organization, Youth Noise to carry out the exercise which is expected to take off in the middle of this month.