Water scarcity, cholera to hit Buipe as treatment plant gets submerged

There is currently a threat of water scarcity at Buipe in the Central Gonja District of the Savannah Region after flood waters submerged the only treatment plant supplying portable drinking water to the people of the enclave. The consequences residents say will be dire on both domestic and commercial purposes considering the spate at which the flood waters continue to surge in the area. The unavailability or lack of alternative means of getting access to clean water has further heightened fears among residents of the town. "Unfortunately, we don't have any other alternative of accessing clean water than to depend on unsafe water bodies so there's no two ways about the fact that water crises is imminent in Buipe", said madam Memuna. "Apart from the water shortage set to hit us anytime soon, the outbreak of cholera is another source of worry to us if urgent attention is not paid to this threat staring at us", Mr. Sumani bemoaned. The Paramount Chief for the Buipe Traditional Area, Buipe-Wura Abdulai Jinapor II, in an interview expressed fears about the situation and called on the government and benevolent organizations to come to the rescue of his people. He disclosed that the river bodies have been contaminated by solid waste and faecal matter making the water unsafe and dangerous for all purposes. "It's a serious matter, but where are we going to get portable drinking water from? The river now is not fit to drink because it has been flooded with toilet and everything, he lamented. According to him, his subjects may be forced to drink from the unsafe water sources but feared that the probability of cholera outbreak and other waterborne diseases is high if nothing is done about the situation. He therefore appealed to the central government and other International well-meaning organizations to come to their aid before the unthinkable happens. Major parts of the Buipe township got flooded last week submerging hundreds of homes including school structures bringing commercial and academic activities to a halt. The flood is as a result of the twin spillage of the Bagre Dam in neighboring Burkina Faso and the Bui Dam in the Bole District of the Savannah Region.