Every bottle counted in thirsty QwaQwa
04 February 2016
Dry riverbeds, a virtually empty dam and lots of dust were clear evidence of the drought gripping QwaQwa in the Free State when Telkom volunteers arrived with desperately needed bottled water.
On the morning of Saturday, 23 January, the volunteers joined the water relief charity Operation Hydrate on a mercy mission to QwaQwa, where 6 336 residents each received 10 litres of bottled water. Altogether, 63 360 litres of water were delivered and distributed.
Although the Telkom volunteers had only planned to spend the day in QwaQwa, they ended up spending the night there – unprepared and with no advance warning. "There were more areas that needed to be covered and the volunteers stayed for that. That shows real commitment," says Nathi Kunene of the Telkom Foundation, which coordinated Telkom's response to the QwaQwa crisis.
"The dam that supports more than two million households in the Free State is almost empty. It was a soul-touching moment when employees went out of their way to help the elders to carry the water; most of them stay alone and they didn't have anyone to carry the water for them," says Jeanette Mtshaki, Operations Specialist at the Telkom Foundation.
Moses Motloung, a Telkom volunteer, says we restored the community's dignity and brought the rain to them. "We raised the spirit of Ubuntu," says Moses.
"When one of the grannies arrived as the truck was about to leave, Moses and Nathi Zwane jumped off the back of the truck and gave her a box of water," says Jeanette. "That was an epic moment for everyone."
Thank you to every Telkom employee who donated water or volunteered to distribute it in QwaQwa last Saturday. If you would still like to donate water, please visit Operation Hydrate Initiatives on Facebook to make contact and arrange to make a donation or have bottled water collected.
Some photographs taken in QwaQwa.
