Photo courtesy of Missouri S&T EWB.

The student chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) at Missouri University of Science and Technology is heading to Santiago, Honduras, to help 6,000 people gain access to clean drinking water.

Trading their time off from school for a five-day service trip, the students will arrive in Santiago on Monday, Jan. 13, and return on Saturday, Jan. 18. The EWB team will complete its phased installation of a water chlorination system for the community.

Last summer, the team installed a chlorine pump at one of the community’s three wells. That installation served as a pilot run for the use of chlorination in the community and allowed the team to see if its solution was sustainable and acceptable for the people of Santiago.

Team members remotely monitored the system from Rolla during the fall semester by calling water operators in Honduras and contacting Santiago’s mayor. They determined that the system had been properly maintained and the community has no opposition to the newly chlorinated water.

To complete the system, the EWB team will help the community install two more chlorination systems this January, effectively chlorinating the entire water supply. The team will mainly oversee this construction, in an effort to encourage the people to take ownership of its maintenance and understand its design.

While in Honduras, the students will also conduct water quality tests to monitor decreases in biological contamination due to additional chlorine.

Matthew Prather, a senior in mechanical engineering from St. Louis, is the Honduras trip leader. Dr. Richard Stephenson, professor emeritus of civil, architectural and environmental engineering, is the EWB faculty advisor. Donate to EWB’s cause at http://www.ewb-mst.org/donate.

The following students will travel to Honduras:

Luis Martinez, a junior in computer science from Sedalia, Mo.

Cathryn Pherigo, a junior in chemical engineering from St. Charles, Mo.

Matthew Prather, a senior in mechanical engineering from St. Louis.

Jeffrey Rottluff, a senior in aerospace engineering from Belleville, Ill.

Haley Witcher, a sophomore in chemical engineering from Sedalia, Mo.