Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Engineers in Africa

"Guinea worm parasites lurk in natural ponds waiting to be thirstily gulped down by anyone baking in a dusty 35C African heat.

Once inside the body, the worm takes about a year to grow to a metre in length before it breaks through the skin of the lower leg. There’s no treatment so the victim must endure a painful couple of months gently twisting the worm around a stick until it’s completely removed."

The solution? Clean water. Read the story of British Sappers in Ghana here.

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