Three old wells, dating back to more than two centuries ago, have come to the rescue of villagers in Kampung Kuala Juru, Butterworth after their water supply was interrupted recently.
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00:00 Old wells, dating back to more than two centuries ago, have come to the rescue of these villagers
00:10 in Butterworth, Penang, after their water supply was interrupted recently.
00:15 When met at Kampung Kuala Juru on Thursday, villager Suleyman Said said they had to think
00:20 outside of the box after their daily lives were impacted by the water cut on December
00:25 18 last year.
00:26 "There was no water for a day, so it was difficult to stay in the village.
00:31 There was no water to bathe, to clean, to do anything at home.
00:35 We took advantage of the long-standing water supply, starting on the 12th, when there was
00:41 no water, we started to clean, wash, clean, and repair the water supply.
00:46 We rebuilt the water supply in Butterworth, made a fence for the women to bathe.
00:54 It was comfortable.
00:56 If there was a problem, we would be there.
01:01 We have built two wells, one in the village, one in the village.
01:09 There are many wells.
01:11 There are about 20 wells.
01:13 There are about 100 wells that were built in the past."
01:19 Suleyman, who was born and raised in Kampung Kuala Juru, said the water originated from
01:25 the springs at nearby Bukit Juru.
01:27 He added that the wells were abandoned and not maintained by the villagers after proper
01:32 water supply was installed by the authorities in the 70s.
01:36 "We used to collect the water from the well, and we would make a fence, a fence, a fence,
01:44 and build a fence, and it cost about four thousand rupiahs, one fence.
01:50 If we had a lot of fences, we would build them one by one.
01:53 There were many families, and if there was one fence, it wasn't enough, it wasn't enough
01:57 for people to bathe, we had to do a lot of work."
02:03 Suleyman said the wells are now being utilised by almost 1,000 villagers, and even some from
02:09 the nearby villages drop by to get their water supply.
02:13 He and the others plan to clean and rehabilitate the remaining wells for future use especially
02:18 during unexpected water cuts in Penang.
02:21 "If we can get ten wells, that's enough.
02:26 If we can get a donation, we will build a fence.
02:33 We want to give back to the villagers who have been affected by the floods."
02:38 For more UN videos visit: www.un.org/webcast
02:44 Transcription by ESO; translation by —
02:50 [BLANK_AUDIO]