Just gets worse

What's a hospital with no reliable water for drinking, washing, flushing? That's life at a big hospital in Caracas, the capitol of Venezuela, where the economy continues to collapse.  Patients fill jugs from a tap and operations are postponed.

photo: yahoo

"I have gone to the operation bloc and opened the tap to wash my hands, as you must do before a surgery, and nothing comes out," said gynecologist Lina Figueria.

Caracas is nestled in a verdant valley . . and its water is pumped from much lower sources. But the pumps have not been maintained . . and President Nicolas Maduro's administration is short of cash.

"For many years this deterioration process was not noticeable. But now the water transport systems are very damaged," said Jose De Viana, former president of Hidrocapital, the state-run utility in charge of Caracas' water supply.

Venezuela's socialist government typically says water cuts are due to sabotage by right-wing "terrorists."