Liberia: The Shocking Truth About Our Drinking Water.
On March 22, 2017, during the observance of World Water Day, UNICEF reported that by 2040, one in four children worldwide will be living in areas with extreme limited water resources, a realization that has already affected many children living in Liberia.
One of the major challenges in communities that have no access to functioning water supplies and functioning sewage systems, is drinking from contaminated or poisoned (chlorine) drinking wells; something that is done unintentionally.
According to the United States Center for Disease Control (CDC), one of the chemicals that is used and is accessible in the market to clear the bacteria and germs caused by nature’s natural microbes is chlorine, a chemical which, in its natural form, is a greenish-yellow gas and has a strong smell that is used as bleach, oxidizing agent and to disinfect in water during purification.
Presently in Liberia and many parts of the world, chlorine is normally sold in small water bottles filled with its powder residue, and sometimes the poisonous gas liquid.
It is sold as little as US$3 and without any questions from the consumer; they are told to drop it in their wells and to wait three days before drinking from them.
According to UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, during the observance of World Water Day, "water is elemental; without it, nothing can grow.
Meanwhile, a family in Caldwell recalls that during the Ebola period many women and children became ill and lost their lives from drinking from contaminated or ‘poisoned’ wells.
"People would drink a cup and start vomiting; and before two or three days, die from stomach challenges," the family added.
It is proven that when chlorine gas comes into contact with moist body tissues such as the eyes, throat, and lungs, an acid is produced that can damage these tissues and causes: blurred vision; burning pain, redness, and blisters on the skin if exposed to gas.