CCF addresses water quality, collection and storage
Wednesday, 9 December, Chennai – Singapore’s Corporate Citizen Foundation (CCF) today installed water filtration systems for the floods-stricken community of Kannagi Nagar resettlement colony. Jerry cans were provided to the community for collection and storage of the cleaned water. The efforts came amidst anxieties that water sources were contaminated by waste waters from the overflows of drains and sewers due to the massive floods.
Working with local volunteer groups, the 3-man team also distributed hygiene essentials including sanitary napkins, bath towels, lungi (sarong) and kidswear to the badly-affected slum community at the Arumbakkam area. These items were procured from the neighbouring state of Bengalore.
The CCF team arrived in Chennai on Tuesday with half a tonne of relief supplies comprising 4 units of manual-powered water filtration systems, 1000 jerry cans and 2000 disposable underwear to support the local relief efforts as Chennai seeks to recover from the destructive floods.
The relief items were flown in complimentary of Singapore Airlines, which resumed its flights to Chennai Tuesday.
(left) CCF’s volunteer, Bharath Kumar of HSL Constructor, demonstrating to and training the local volunteer groups at the Kannagi Nagar resettlement area on the use and maintenance of the manual-powered water filtration systems.
(centre) Womenfolk at Kannagi Nagar resettlement area collecting potable water using the collapsible jerry cans.
(right) A local volunteer acquaints himself with the use and maintenance of the water filtration system.
(left) Boy wonders – Water, water everywhere, but just so much to drink.
(centre) Several streets in Chennai remain submerged, including this one near the Coovum river.
(right) CCF’s volunteers from HSL Constructor, Serena Teo and Bharath Kumar (both in white), working with local volunteers to distribute hygiene essentials to the floods-stricken slum community at the Arumbakkam area.
ABOUT CCF
The Corporate Citizen Foundation (CCF) was officially launched by Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam in October 2014. It seeks to be the catalyst for proactive and constructive corporate collaboration for a better, safer and friendlier Asia. Initiated and seed-funded by HSL Constructor, the CCF is a private sector initiative to pull and pool together appropriate corporate assets to help improve the capacity and resilience of vulnerable communities in Asia, through sustainable livelihood programmes including disaster preparedness and response.
The CCF had established the Swift Emergency Evaluation Deployment (SEED), as its first responders for early access into and appropriate intervention at disaster-affected areas. SEED is simultaneously tasked to evaluate and disseminate first-hand information to incoming aid responders for more informed strategic decisions. Hence, the SEED’s slogan – Bridging the First Mile. SEED’s pioneer partners include the Pacific Flight Services of ST Aerospace (aerospace); Channel NewsAsia of Mediacorp (communications); Golden Season (water) and HSL Constructor (engineering).
Thus far, the CCF and SEED have responded to super typhoon Hagupit in the Philippines (Dec ‘14), the massive Kelantan floods in Malaysia (Dec ’14), and the Gorkha earthquake in Nepal (Apr ‘15).
