South Sudan Journal, Parts 5 & 6 (of 29)

Message # 5 October 7, 2003


Hello Mom and Dad

Getting on the computer is still a problem, but fortunately I have a couple more minutes. I am borrowing a part from another email, describing my day.

Today, Karline left for Loki, the logistics handed over finally to me. She has done a great job here, and things are in great shape for me to continue them. Having 10 days for the handover was good, but near the end I was consulting her on even the most trivial ques­tions. (Sort of like how one's mental math level deteriorates when a calculator is on the table.) But, the plane left, and so did the source of answers for all my questions.

It isn't that bad, I do feel confident in being able to handle the things that come up. For­tunately for me, that doesn't mean doing it all alone, but I also have a great team to con­sult, if need be.

So today, many things came up; decisions to be made that were not just new problems that I haven't seen before, as happens in Canada (what I was used to), but some of these were on a very different level.

The big things that came up today were staffing issues. One labourer came up to me with his supervisor (and translator) John. "His sister died, he needs some time off." "Didn't his sister just die last week?" "No that was his brother, his sister just died now and his father needs help with the cows, so he needs some time." Gulp, "How many days does he need?"...

A little while later in the day John came back, "Steve, the water lady who had the sick child needs some time off." Gulp. "How are things?" "The baby died." "How much time should we give her?" "I think 6 days is good." "Okay, arrange it"...

Later I found John holding down a lady outside the lab. She was getting a Kala Azar test done (a little painful). Afterwards I asked if he knew her, he did, she was a relative. I was getting ready for him to ask for time off to help her, but it never came.

One more thing happened, that was actually quite funny. A plane came by; it was ICRC (International Committee of the Red Cross.) They get calls from NGO's (like us) across South Sudan with requests to pick up patients to fly to their field hospital in North Kenya (Loki). Anyway, they landed because there was someone to pick up here. When that happens, everyone with any injury comes to the airstrip to see if they can get a "green light" from the airplane nurse, and get to the hospital. Since the plane wasn't the one I was expecting, I went back to work and didn't go see it. After it left, someone mentioned, "what are you going to do about the laundry." Before I answered, I saw the pile of half finished laundry, I saw where the laundry lady usually sits, a plane taking off, and pon­dered if they were related. He informed me, the laundry lady had been trying to get on that plane for a while, with her sick child, and today they got a "green light" and were off.

How can I begin to understand, and how can I be upset at someone for something like that. The "green lights" are taken more these days, since the cease-fire has freed up the time of a lot of surgeons, and as such they lossen up their limitations of what a "green light" is. These people are thrown in the back of the plane, (like a Mexican family in the back of an overcrowded pick-up truck,) given a bucket, because most of them throw up, and then sent on a roller coaster of their life. This world is truly a different place. Then, in the stillness of the night, a dull, almost invisible sound is heard in the far distant sky. It is a airliner, cruising at 10,000 meters above us. On board, there are cold beers being served and a movie being played. Further, there is a crew of attendants pacing the aisles, "would you like another blanket?" "An after dinner drink?" "Was your food not hot enough?" "You have a headache, that's not right, I will rush to get you an aspirin."

Well, just over the last 20 minutes the sky was taken over by clouds, and the winds picked up to a good blow. Dust was flying, and plastic sheeting was catching the wind from the peaks of the buildings. A storm has come. The sky opened up and the rain is falling. Tomorrow the airstrip won't be landable, fortunately for Karline, she got out today. Otherwise the next plane to come here is on the 13th. The wind is picking up a little now; I'm starting to pay more attention to it, to see what this compound can handle, (sort of like taking a new vessel out to sea for a shakedown.) Already some branches have come off the trees, and things blowing around, but nothing big. I am in the office, and closed in for a while to wait this out. (Even though I need a shower; I think it would be better to wait till it slows.)

(What a relief, the heat has really been something today. Now it is cooler, and quite pleasant.)

Back home, there is a romantic, curious, fascination with storms. I have found however that when the integrity of a shelter, vessel, or equipment is at risk, my attention to the noises and other signs heightens, significantly.

Funny that the same concepts of structure and weather barriers I was dealing with at Hal­sall (applied to technically advanced buildings) hold the same weight to these tukels, made of mud, and sticks tied together by grass, and covered in grass. The first leaks are starting to come through now. I just moved one of the tables out of the way. Glad I'm in the office, our sat-phone was just under that leak. Oops. Some more are coming in at another corner, but nothing under that, so I can continue this commentary. We are going to renovate this office soon, but maybe very soon will be a better plan. Its roof is about a year old, and that is the expected lifespan of this type of grass. (In Sri Lanka, we could get about 1.5 years out of the woven palm leaves.)

Another leak now above the door. That one is running down the wall a little too, and taking some mud with it. Fortunately for only 1kg of salt and 2 bars of soap, we can hire a lady to work for a day re-mudding some of the damage done tonight.
Okay, just moved the desk out a little more, that leak is spreading. But, to my... delight, this problem is a little more complicated, there is a leak in the middle of the tukel too. I think I will stay here for a while and ensure our computer, and communication equipment is okay through the night.

Ann and Joan (doctor and nurse) just came back from the clinic, they are drenched and full of mud. The clinic isn't too well off. The shelter we have for the patients isn't too good, and their belongings aren't too plentiful. Apparently they are all huddled under the large tents we have, and other tukels in the clinics. I would like to go there and see what is needed, but I am a little worried about the leaks here. We have some plastic I can pull over this tukel, if needed, but that would be a messy operation, to say the least.

Okay, the high winds are dying down, and the rain has steadied out, but still comes on. The lightning and thunder still plays, but not as loud. I think the storm is over.

Wow, that is interesting, a loud plop drew my attention to a pile of mud growing in height in the corner, and an equally sized hole forming in the wall above it. So, first we re-roof, then we'll re-mud that up real nice again. Some noises at the door, and when I opened it, two wet cats, and about 10 frogs jumped in. Note: There are a lot of frogs here. They come out at night, and I guess they don't taste so good, because this starving population does not eat them.

Well, the rains slowing now, this portion of the storm over. I will leave things as they are, but wrap things with a healthy amount of plastic before going to bed.

Also, another note on the projects. With all this rain, our maize stocks have been low. WFP (World Food Program) has been trying to drop food here, but the drop zone is flooded (and this rain isn't helping!) As such, we can go for another week, with giving out our regular portions, then we will be out. The guys down in Loki are trying to arrange getting another flight for us this week, but the planes are all booked pretty tight. WFP has a plane that can land on our airstrip, but it too is booked solid, and now our air­strip is unlandable.

Tomorrow is a food distribution to the Kala Azar and Feeding Centre patients. Our plan if the food cannot come, is to cut back on the KA patients. This would extend our other rations for the feeding centre and TB (tuberculosis) patients another week, or so.

When sailing, I saw the fruitless worth in damning the weather, but never like this. Tomorrow, we will probably all agree that a plane coming this week is unlikely, and as such the weekly 4kg of maize (the majority of a week's food to these people) is cut for the ~250 KA patients. What to do? In a fit of righteousness, one could raid our food store full of cans. With that one month supply, for 8 people, we could feed the clinic (of ~500) for... one meal.

This shortage has come after all the stocks delivered before the rainy season, have emp­tied. This shortage was anticipated, but not to this extent. (Last year at this time, the land was dusty and dry, and the cows were already making the journey to the river for the dry season grazing.) This isn't any one person's fault, it is nature just doing its thing. Emo­tionally it feels good to raise a fist to the air and let out a few well-chosen words to the powers that be, but there are better things to do.

Well, I should go to bed. It is 2300, and I have a feeling tomorrow will be full of repair work, as well as planning for the next rain.

Goodnight,

Steve

P.S. Christina, hier regnet es gerade in Stroemen! Tschüss.



Message #6 October 9, 2003


Hello Mom and Dad, thanks for the email.

It is good to hear that more and more people are enjoying these emails. Unfortunately if I ever do write a book about some of these things, I am afraid none of you will buy it, since it will be old news.

Also, I am glad you are censoring things if you read these to your class Mom. That may save you a bunch of time trying to explain how it is common to have 2-5 wives in some countries and not give a learning 12-year-old kid with a good memory, any ideas.

Carol-Ann: "I realize that it is very hot and now very wet in Sudan. How are your clothes holding out?"

They are all right, but there are some reports of missing clothing from the expats. I understand completely that the cleaners may want to take some things home, and not return them. There is opportunity in their face a lot of the day. Part of my job is to regulate the stocks, enough so that it appears that it is not worth it to steal anything. I say, "appears" because we go through about 300 different items, weighing about 20,000kgs, a month, and I am not counting it all. But I think I have the confidence of the
storekeepers that I am counting it all, since I have caught a few timely errors. With the laundry, there was a large box of laundry that was not emptied completely everyday. After a few months, it was pretty full, and I bet then some things went missing. So, I have cleared out the box, and now there is a small one, with very few things in it. Also, all the unclaimed laundry is serving as a nice source of clothing for the odd cases here and there. There is a kid with a very bad skin infection, but he has a tight T-shirt that he wants to put on, to hide a lot of the infected area. But it is a painful thing to put on. So, there was a nice T-shirt, unclaimed by the team that fit him superbly. Another satisfied customer! And hopefully less temptation for the staff to steal.

With regards to my clothes, they are wearing a little more than Sri Lanka. Here there is a lot more "hands on" work, and a lot less (actually no) problem with me getting my hands dirty. In Sri Lanka, the caste system declared it rude to allow me to do some types of work (labour). Here, there is no formal caste system (let alone other complex systems or traditions) so it is only natural that since I have two hands, I also carry/lift/push/pull with everyone else. It is quite nice like that.

Also, I remember we talked about how many clothes I brought here. It was a short list, but I shortened it again. I have with me in the project, two pairs of pants, 5 t-shirts, one long sleeve shirt, a couple sarongs, lots of underwear (my luxury item!) two pairs of sandals and a pair of shoes. It works quite well. Anyway, the running joke is that no one takes their clothes home with them. I think that is true for me too.

Carol-Ann: “Any suggestions for Xmas or things you need or may like us to send you?”
PLEASE SEND ME SOME COLD! A nice big bottle of something cold! Besides that, I can't think of anything so sweet. As always, news from home is very nice, and the biggest thing I miss. Also, I have had some fun with that little trick, sliding half my thumb off. The kids love it, and every time I am out of the compound, and most times I am in the clinic, people are pulling my thumbs trying to take it off. It is very funny. I would like to learn some other tricks like that, that do not require any props. Those little magic books you sent me in Sri Lanka were good, but they are in Canada. Anyone know any tricks I can try? Also, I want to try to make something out of little paper wrappers (from our high calorie food distributions.) The wrappers are littering the paths, and if there is a trick that catches a kid's mind, the paths will be picked clean. Anyone have any ideas?

Carol-Ann: “Are you basically wearing those MSF t-shirts and pants that you planned?”

Yup. Unfortunately the MSF shirts are a little thick, but I think with the washing they will get thinner.

Carol-Ann: “We have a National Geographic map of Northeastern Africa above our computer and cannot find Lankien. Peter has put a pushpin just below Malakal... I'm not sure if he knows something I don't. Please give us instructions so the push pin could be placed a little more accurately on this map.”

It is approximately 110kms south (bearing 075) of Malakal, or approximately (Lat: 08.5 degrees N, Long: 32 degrees E) Roughly, that is 120 kms west of where the west most point of Ethiopia hits Sudan. Psycologically, though, if you find a space with nothing in it, surrounded by more nothing, look to the left, there is a water pump (that is downtown Lankien) and the main clinic is slightly to the north, a little past the clinic, and you are back into nothing. If you take a plane, really you can blink and miss it.

Thank you for the health warning too Mom. It is a good point, and it is also stressed here too, that health is the most important thing. If someone falls a little ill, they are taken out to Loki to rest and get better, usually without any consideration of personal preference. Fortunately, I have been very healthy so far. I do have in me every vaccine available, but still, I have not even had... traveler’s 'illness'. Also, with this heat and humidity, sweat stays present long enough for me to do the math. (Steve's mass - lots of sweat = Steve doing an impersonation of a raisin.) And as such, I am drinking enough water to flush my system quite nicely and stay full. It is a lot of water though. Quite often I feel a little thirsty and down a litre of water in a few gulps, without it seeming odd.

Carol-Ann: “I'm sure you have many challenges with trying to keep the laborers, food,
airstrip, etc.”

Yes, that is the problem of the day. With that heavy rain earlier this week, the airstrip is, "unlandable" and the WFP drop area is a swamp. The guys in Loki are trying like mad to get a buffalo (the largest plane that can land here) in, but they are very expensive, and highly desired. They got one lined up for tomorrow, but the strip is still wet. I have been
walking it in the mornings and evenings (for a few days now) but the evenings have always brought big clouds, and sometimes some rain too. Sammy, (the team leader, who has been here for years) has been good with discussing this issue. We both agree that if it continues to dry as it has, Saturday it would be ready for the plane. Unfortunately, the plane isn't available on Saturday, it is available on Friday afternoon, or in a week. Wow, it really is that simple, yes or no. We will walk the strip tomorrow lots, and try our best to be unbiased when we call it, "landable" or "unlandable" and own up to the consequences if we are wrong. Saturday is when we have another food distribution to the patients that we will miss if we call it unlandable, and Buffalos are expensive planes if we call it land able and are wrong. We have all the facts, (bits of mud, more wet in areas, and dryer in others) and we do a little figuring, one heavy airplane coming pretty fast, landing hard into the mud, then sliding/slowing down, all the way down the strip. (In a similar way as the high school math teacher asks: A train leaves Boston the same time as Mrs. Smith starts brewing coffee... Does the snow melt?) Does that plane stop before the airstrip runs out? We can walk the airstrip and talk about it till the cows come home, but still there is heavy figuring to do.

I forgot if I mentioned the plane on Tuesday. A smaller plane landed here in the mud. We all went to see it, expecting pieces, but finding it alright (but a little muddy). It took two tries to take off, and I bet those pilots will never try landing here for a long time.

Well, we'll see what happens. If it rains, it is almost easier, since all bets are off.

Besides that little thing, today we moved the office into a large tent. It is actually quite nice. This tent (called a trigano) is the basic tent for all MSF purposes. It is quick to assemble (assuming all parts are present) and fit for all weather (it even keeps the heat in!) We moved the office to redo the roof, walls and door. It was leaking a bunch, and parts of the walls were... less than they should be. Also, the cats had made holes in the mosquito net too. So, today after the log team and I moved all the big things, I dismissed them early so I could do the electrical set-up.

In Sri Lanka, my log teams were experts on solar panels and electrical work related to that. Here, I had to walk away (and offer a learning experience) from the team, as all 5 got involved at un-doing a bolt and nut, the wrong way. After 15 minutes, they were getting really into it with leverage, still turning the wrong way. I don't mean to downgrade their skills, but rather they have different skills. They can call the weather very well, and they can find the best mud for the walls, very well, but skip ahead a century of technology, and their skills fall short. After the office was empty, the roofing crew came by (no shortage of labour here) and started pulling off the old grass. Some of it will be re-used. After that, I want to raise the area over the door, then it will be re-roofed. After that, some of the mud walls will be knocked off, and re-mudded. (Funny division on labour, men roof and put the first mud on the walls, women do the final mudding. "Why is it like that?" is a question with no answer just yet.)

Well. It is close to a full moon. Last night and tonight many people are out most of the night, talking, drumming and singing in the different directions around the compound. It is very bright with the moon, and I guess with the shortage of other lighting (there is none) this is a chance to go out on the town. The night has cooled a little, so I will hit the bed.

Take care, and thank you for writing, it is good to hear from home.

Love,

Steve