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Dan Rowe was among the volunteers repairing public water systems damaged by Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica in October. A project leader for Veolia North America, Rowe, who helps operate Nassau County‘s water treatment facility in Wantagh, was up for the task, despite the challenges.
Rowe volunteers with Veolia Foundation, whose international mission includes assisting during humanitarian emergencies, providing development aid, strengthening the environment and supporting biodiversity. In Jamaica, Rowe worked with a team that included members of the French Red Cross, as they confronted the threat of disease and dehydration facing the island’s thousands of residents.
Rowe spent three weeks working with improvised equipment, inventing solutions in the field and navigating an international team of people he had never met before.
He said there were many “MacGyver” moments, referring to a TV character who could create a workaround and save the day even during the most dire circumstances.
“I brought along tools that I anticipated would be required but there were field challenges that required a ‘MacGyver’ solution if we were to get the island’s population potable water that would be safe to drink,” he said in a written statement.
“Another challenge was the language barrier,” Rowe said. “Unlike our teams here at Veolia North America where each member knows intuitively what the other person’s skillset is, I was working with people I had never met before, and my French is – to be polite – limited.”
Rowe also had to manage the expectations of his family back on Long Island as he worked to provide access to safe drinking water for Jamaica.
“I was gone far longer than what I expected, essentially working through a solid month with one day off but my family understood the urgency, the mission, and the commitment,” he said.
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Adina Genn
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