Stories from Indonesia
Padang water plants wind down
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Two water purification plants are winding down production as the Indonesian city of Padang continues to recover from the earthquake that struck the region on 30 September.
The main water supply station, which supplied 60 per cent of the city’s water, was extensively damaged during the quake and deemed non-operational by the local works department.
Army’s reverse osmosis plants have produced more than one and a half million litres of clean water for some of the poorest regions of Padang.
Supervising the two sites, Lieutenant Tim Rowe said the work had been hard as this was the first operational deployment of the equipment.
“The plants arrived in our unit in the middle of last year but it wasn’t until February this year that we had completed the initial training and began trialing the gear,” Lieutenant Rowe said.
“They have been used on a couple of regional training tasks but this is the first time they have been deployed in an operational capacity. We had some teething problems but that’s to be expected under these circumstances.”
Now in the final phases of breaking down the plants, the teams have been able to reflect on what they have achieved.
“The local community has really embraced us, we have become a part of their everyday lives,” Lieutenant Rowe said.
“It will be hard for us to leave having made such an impact on these peoples’ lives but knowing that we have done such an important job makes it better.”
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