Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Even when there's water everywhere, it can be difficult to find a drop to drink, as this Burmese woman illustrates, stooping down to collect fresh water from a dam in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis.

Disasters such as floods and hurricanes can wipe out networks of pipes that deliver clean water. What does get through may have been contaminated "by silt, dirt, debris or, at worse case, animals or people," says Tracy Reines, the director of international disaster response for the American Red Cross.

Depending on how water has been polluted, people can cope temporarily by filtering or boiling it, or by using chemicals that cause debris to sink to the bottom. Those techniques don't replace the need for a sustainable water source, though.

Clean water "is always one of the top issues in virtually most natural disasters . . . [because] every aspect in your life is virtually dependent on water," Reines says.

-- Kathleen Hom