Water-Carts, Rabaul
p. 26 · Read in the full issue
Back to Your Tanks and Water-Carts, Rabaul
The elation of Rabaul residents who thought they had permanent water supply has evaporated—like the" supply. Ther has been a great misunderstanding about the Burma Road wells upon which, as we reported in July, hopes were based.
THE misunderstanding arose out
of a statement at the June meeting of the Rabaul Town Advisory Council, by the retiring District Commissioner, J. K.
McCarthy.
Mr. McCarthy stated that the Burma Road wells were believed to be ample for supplying the town with reticulated water and that only lack of funds stood in the way.
This must have come as a sur prise to some members of the Council who went away, and during the following month, privily ex amined the Burma Road area and could see no obvious source of a town’s water requirements.
The bubble of hope was finally burst at the July meeting of the TAG when District Officer J. J.
Murphy stated that Mr. McCarthy’s information was “not quite correct;” and by Regional Works Officer E. V.
Johnson, who said that as far as his department was concerned it was not aware of an adequate supply of water anywhere in the vicinity of Rabaul, although in
vestigations were preceding.
Mr. Johnson told the meeting th his Department’s pumps, operatii on wells around the Harbour, we working 24 hours a day to supj calling ships and any individi) who required it and provided t means of carting it. As far as knew there was no charge ma for the water itself.
Each dry season since the w. water-carts have been a comma place in Rabaul. A large sum money has been wasted in this ws Before the war, water-carting w. not unknown in exceptionally loi dry spells, but it was not usual as present. The reason was that ea, household was provided wi t adequate storage tanks.
This has not been so since t: war—due partly to the tempora nature of the housing, in the fir instance, and the shortage of gs vanised iron and tank-maki: materials generally. New Admini tration houses are now being pr. vided with about 6,000 gallons water storage. This, in gener should be adequate for Rabaul’s fe really dry months of each year.