European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 28, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse Page 4 the stars and stripes crisis in Rwanda thursday july 28,1994trucks from Page 1 Riviers and other gear for the estimated 1.2 million refugees cholera and other diseases killing at least 1,800 people a Day in squalid ref Ugee Camps around Goma american forces also were asked to help with another urgent task burying the read the first trickle of Safe water from Lake Kiva began flowing to Soma of the refugees tuesday with More . Purification equipment set to. Start pumping thousands of Gallons of water sterilized by american troops to combat cholera diarrhoea and dehydration could t reach the rwandans. A we were hoping to dump this 26,000 Gallons of water Here but As you can see its just sitting Here. Its frustrating a said maj. Eric Hanson spokesman for the . Army water purification unit. A a we re supposed to produce water and the supposed to ship it a Hanson said. A we. Asked for at feast three Tanker trucks. Eventually two showed up. The first had a Bunch of holes in it that we had to plug up. The other we had to turn around because it had a layer of was Oline the second . Truck with a a Petroleum painted boldly on the sides of its two tanks eventually returned flushed of gasoline. But the Driver told exasperated american service members not to fill the tanks fully with water because the clutch and brakes of the truck were just about shot and Cope with the weight. The american engineers can store Only 33.000 Gallons and depend on .-sup-plied vehicles to carry away the purified water. The army a water purification system so far is capable of producing about 96.000 quarts of water a Day far Short of the 6 million quarts the United nations says would provide the Bare minimum for the refugees. The inability to transport even Small amounts of water was yet another exam pie of the colossal obstacles facing Relief Hutu refugees fled to Eastern . Troops from Mannheim Germany celebrate As they finish installing a water purifier tuesday on the Shore of Lake Kiva in Zaire. A Zaire in the dying Days of Rwanda a genocidal civil War but without proper shelter sanitation and water the Camps have turned to graveyards. An estimated 16,000 people have died since mid july and cholera is the major killer. More purification equipment was coming from a private company in California and a team of volunteers from the state was working with the troops to Lay hoses for carrying clean water to downtown Goma. A but Well need some More Damn trucks if its Gonna do any Good a said Jack Horner 60, a Calaveras county calif., firefighter who is leading the team of specialists from portable water Supply systems of Redwood City. Rotting bodies meanwhile continued to pile up around the foul swollen Camps in Eastern Zaire overwhelming Relief workers. A a it a like open sores just oozing and Breeding death a said Ann Marie Huby of the Charity doctors without Borders in Goma. From its International offices in Belgium the group said the uncollected bodies pose the a greatest risk for further Ray Wilkinson spokesman for the . High commissioner for refugees said the United nations asked washing ton to Send More troops to supervise burials bulldozers to dig mass Graves and 25 to 30 trucks to haul bodies. Info Wear by Kevin Robinson. Staff writer Rhein main a Germany a the chief of the . European come visited service members participating in operation. Support Hope on wednesday and praised them for helping save the lives of rwandan refugees. A you have done outstanding work. Most importantly you be saved lives. If you under stand the priorities Woodfork that Ive Given the command Stop the dying is what we re trying to do a army Genii. George a. Joulwan told airmen and soldiers involved in the operation Quot you should be Roud of trying to Etc save a generation of rwandans for the future a Joulwan said. Airmen and soldiers at Rhein main have worked nonstop since monday to Airlift tons of food Medicine and Boom water purification equipment to rwandan refugees who Joulwan from Page 1 Joulwan acknowledged and . Officials Are working with the French to solve it. Joulwan said the deployed troops in Eastern Zaire will carry personal weapons but the military risk there is believed to be Low. A we think the higher threat will be disease and things like that so therefore inoculations and briefings Are essential for the deploying personnel a he said. Part of Schroeder a Mission is to determine whether . Forces also can conduct humanitarian Relief operations inside Rwanda safely. Aside from setting up Aid stations the task Force wants to use the Kigali Airport which apparently remains usable despite recent Battles in the capital once substantial numbers of refugees return the task Force Hopes to restore water systems and other infrastructure then turn the whole operation Over to the United nations. President Clinton a Appeal to 24 other nations for help appears to be bearing fruit Joulwan said. The German government has offered to Send 13 water purification teams to the country and Australia and Canada have of feud Aid As Well. Joulwan conceded that an Airdrop conducted at the Start of the operation produced some confusion but added that the . Forces dropped the goods where they were asked to and that Airdrop May prove useful later in the operation. He praised those service members who have participated in the Relief Effort so far. _ a to those families particularly Here in Europe whose mothers or fathers or sons and daughters Are deploying in this operation i want you to understand that i think we truly have demonstrated not Only their professionalism but also their readiness Quot the general said. A they have done it in very Good order and they Are saving lives right have been dying by the thousands. Quot the water purification unit that a in Africa now has two 600-gallon units and the one that came from the states. They Are pumping out about 70,000 to 100,000 Gallons of drinkable water a Day a Joulwan said. He called Rhein main a proven a air Bridges for getting supplies to operations desert shield and desert storm in the persian Gulf provide Comfort in Northern Iraq and Turkey provide Promise in Bosnia and Herzegovina restore Hope in Somalia and now support Hope in Rwanda. The air base will become a one of the Center Points for providing Relief supplies As the flow comes in from the United states and All Over the world a Joulwan said. Regular air Force and air Reserve personnel from Rhein main and units from the United states have come together to a help those who Are going through a crisis Quot said tech sgt. Marvin Woodfork of the 69th Aerial port so at Andrews fab my. A we All have a group Effort going and we Are trying our Best to help relieve the discomfort tragedy and death that soc curing Over there in Rwanda As Well a continue on with the other missions tha were taking place prior to this situation a Woodfork said. An army unit from Kaiserslautern that 5th quartermaster det recently loaded equipment for missions in Bosnia and so Malia. Adding Rwanda to that list mad it sgt. 1st class Hugo Boom feel i can go to Burger King eat hot food at my House and drink water anywhere 1 want a Boom said. A but these people in Rwanda done to have that. A if we done to do it help the who will a
