Cost of Sending One Pallet of H2O to Tuluksak Will Make You Sick
The village of Tuluksak's water purification plant burned down. Donations have helped provide water to the village but likely won't be enough to sustain them. The village has been without running water for over two weeks and reportedly 1/3 of the federally recognized tribe has tested positive for COVID-19.
Indigenous activist CeeJay Johnson, who I've written about previously, established a long-running GoFundMe account last year to provide much-needed supplies to indigenous communities throughout Alaska.
We chatted briefly on Twitter over the weekend when I inquired as to the cost of transporting much-needed water to Tuluksak. Johnson tweeted an invoice showing a price tag of $3,578.81 saying "We initially shipped $100 worth of water from Anchorage to Bethel for $1,000 (not even all the way to Tuluksak), but we've gotten better at this since then. Learning as we go."
Reportedly, after Johnson's first shipment, Alaska Airlines flew more water into the village "for free in several loads."
Johnson believes that "FEMA and the National Guard need to be deployed" to the stricken village. She spoke with someone in Tuluksak over the weekend and was told that the state checked in on them, "but then ignored the village as usual."
Alaska Public Media wrote last week that "in the short term, the community wants to connect its well to the school. The school is set up for running water, and residents can use it for laundry and hauling water to their homes. But the well pulls up water from the Tuluksak River, which isn’t safe to drink. So that solution raised more questions than answers."
Alaska Governor Michael Dunleavy has not spoken about or acted on the crisis facing Tuluksak and many on social media have said that they feel he should intervene in the matter by declaring a state of emergency.
Alaska activists are asking that you contact these state officials and encourage them to help the struggling village. Sending an email takes just two minutes and might make a difference.
Contact:
Alaska Governor Michael Dunleavy
