ANTHC partners with the community of Akhiok to help residents resolve water woes
September 25, 2017
After going without clean water for almost a decade at one point, the residents of Akhiok, a community of 71 on the south end of Kodiak Island, now have a new water storage tank to ensure regular access to clean water. This project was a partnership between the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, and Akhiok city and Tribal leadership.
Construction recently wrapped up on the 100,000-gallon water storage tank. Its construction is the capstone in a series of projects ensuring residents living in this remote area have access to clean water. Two 10,000-gallon tanks previously serving the community had been known to freeze up in the winters, leaving residents without an adequate water source or a ready means of fighting fire.
In a recent story by Kodiak’s local public radio station, KMXT, Dan McCoy, Akhiok mayor, said, “Five years ago during a bad freeze, they froze solid like big ice cubes — 10,000-gallon ice cubes.”
The new tank is sufficiently insulated, which will keep the water flowing throughout the winter months. The tank’s size allows for both residents and the local fire department to draw water at the same time, should the need arise. Thus, the coordination between ANTHC and its community partners in Akhiok has helped to ensure a lack of clean water will no longer plague people living in this unique corner of Alaska.