CDC reports third-world conditions in Alaska

Alaskan villagers without running water have high rates of lung and skin infections, according to a study released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Remote Alaska includes about 170 Eskimo villages, mostly along coasts and rivers and reachable only by boat, snowmobile or airplane.

Although most have electricity and heat, many lack running water and sewage, because permafrost means that pipes have to be run on stilts.

Plumbing each house can cost $50,000. Instead, villagers use bucket toilets and haul water in jerrycans from a central reservoir.

In the United States, 99.4 percent of homes have plumbing; in these villages, about a third do not.

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Source : The New York Times