The first phase of the Blessings Flow water filter project was completed on April 24th, 2024, with filter distribution in the fifth community, Kuhrpa, on the upper reaches of the Patuca River. Following that trip, Yamnika Laya met to discuss the future of the project and decided to focus next on the northern shore of the Caratasca Lagoon, beginning with the communities of Puswaia and Ujumbila. During visits to these two villages over the next several weeks, Yamnika Laya volunteers will also look into the several other population centers in this area.
The Caratasca Lagoon system is the largest lagoon in Honduras and one of the largest in Central America. Historically a center of Mískito culture and population, it is also the site of the first Honduran Moravian mission established in 1930. The Caratasca Peninsula has problems with reliable sources of potable drinking water. Wells that do exist, regularly dry up in April and May during the height of the dry season. The sandy soil that adversely affects agriculture, exacerbates the drinking water shortage. Deep wells cannot be dug because the sandy soils tend to cave in. Typical wells are only four or five feet deep and must be cleaned out or re-excavated on an almost weekly basis as the sand walls collapse. Many villagers construct makeshift well walls from lumber or use metal drums with the ends cut out to prevent cave-ins that would otherwise block the wells.
Thank you for your support of the Blessings Flow Project! You can contribute to the second phase of this effort at www.MoravianMission.org/Give/.