Underbelly

Last week I had the opportunity to tour the engineering decks of the Africa Mercy - areas normally off-limits to most of the crew.

I wish I could remember all of the statistics our guide shared with us, they were all mind-boggling, but I'll include the few I know for sure.

My cabin is in the forward section of Deck 2, but the rest of Deck 2 and all of Deck 1 make up engineering. Our tour started around Deck 2 midships, where most of the monitoring and control systems for the ship are housed.

Generator control panels

The ship has been retrofitted with 4 generators, two of which are running at all times to provide power. At sea, the engines would normally power the ship, but in port they only run the engines every few weeks for a brief test. 

Main engine controls

Bridge command indicators and throttles

Thousands of litres of fuel are consumed each day to keep the generators running. 

Two types of fuel, along with drinking water and waste water, are stored on Deck 1, and their levels are monitored and controlled from this room as well, in order to keep the ship from listing too far to one side or the other. 

List indicator - seems quite stationary at 0 even when the ship is noticibly rocking.
I can't imagine what it's like when it gets over to 5 or 10 degrees!

One of several drinking water tanks.

The ship can hold up to 1 million litres of fresh water. Our supply in port comes from ashore, but it is filtered, chlorinated, and filtered again before it goes into circulation. 

Our waste water must also be processed before it can be released into the port's waters. Ordinarily, waste water cannot be dumped so close to shore, but since we're sitting here for 10 months, there's really no where else for it to go. Thus, the AFM is outfitted with a more intensive treatment system than most ships.

One of two very large treatment tanks.

Rubber boots for scale.
And for removing things that aren't supposed to be flushed. 

The fire suppression system is pretty impressive. The sprinkler system runs throughout every area of the ship, of course, but down in engineering there is also a CO2 foam system - that will kill you much faster than a fire if you happen to be trapped in the same compartment. There are indicator lights throughout engineering that tell you if there is a phone call, or if you need to put on your breathing apparatus.

Sprinkler system tanks - along side a portable fire extinguisher.

There are areas in engineering, namely, where the fuel is stored under pressure, where if there was ever a fire you'd basically be insta-dead. 

Here is the most important thing in engineering:

Air conditioning.

Obviously most ships have to be self-sufficient when they are sailing, but most end up at a major port city (in a developed nation) more often than the AFM. So there are quite a few engineers dedicated to maintaining, repairing, and sourcing replacement parts. Most parts can't be supplied by our host countries, so if we need something we don't have, it'll take 2 - 4 months to arrive on the next container shipment. Our guide Charlie's main job is managing Stores; ensuring we DON'T end up in that situation, and we always have what we need.

Maintenance & Repair Workshop

Another important role that engineering plays is medical waste disposal. In the hospital, the amount of waste we generate is minuscule compared to a western hospital. We sanitize and re-use as much as is conceivably possible, destroy anything that should NOT be re-used (such as IV bags, medication bottles, etc), and dispose of most of it in a dumpster in the port. Sharps and glass vials are turned over to a reliable local disposal company. So what remains? Any waste that is contaminated with blood, body fluids, or tissue. This is usually 2-4 double-bagged bins of waste per shift, per unit. Probably more than that in the ORs. Here is a whole day's worth:

Although, I think this pile was bigger when we first walked through.

It takes one of the engineering crew ~ 4 hours a day to manually drop each bag into the incinerator, which burns at 850 °C.

Incinerator peep hole. AKA the window into the fiery abyss.

I mentioned the generators before - here's one of the 4 with me for scale:

Here's a little clip to give you an idea of how loud it was down there:

And now for the thing you've all been waiting for...the engines.

Actually, I lied. These are just the oil pumps for the engines.

 THESE are the engines:

It's awkward posing when you can't hear anything the photographer is saying...

This is one of the ship's 4 engines, each with 16 cylinders, which together power 2 massive propellers.

One more artsy shot before we climb through the 8+ decks up into to the "funnel;" the blue tower housing all of the exhaust stacks, including the engines, generators, and incinerator.

For reference:

The funnel. Mmmm...smell those lovely fumes.

Before you fret, the incinerator burns quite hot enough to ensure nothing toxic remains in the output. Nothing beyond your standard carbon smoke, in any case. The stacks also rise quite a ways above where we were standing, and compared to the oppressive heat of the engine room, the funnel is a lovely breath of fresh air!

A different perspective on Deck 8! You can see our lifeboats, radar, and bridge comms tower.

Well, that's the tour, folks!

It certainly gave me a huge appreciation for the conditions the engineering crew soldier through every day...often working below the engine room floor in cramped access crawlspaces. And it is HOT down there. At least as hot as the mid-day African sun.

Meanwhile in the hospital...

A Ward is now full of young cataract patients, who, unlike the adults, require a bit of anaesthesia and recovery for their procedures. Some developed problems due to poor nutrition or injury, while others were born with the condition. They are as curious as any kid, but they sense with their ears and their hands - and will get their hands on anything they can - including your face!

I'm looking forward to the next celebration of sight - it should be a fun one.

Five more ladies participated in the Dress Ceremony on Sunday! Most are now home or resting at the Hope Center until their follow-up appointment, but they are DRY. One of them for the first time in 30 YEARS.

Those smiles bring tears of joy to my eyes every time.

Please pray for the 5th lady who is still on board to receive IV antibiotics. She has a very tiny hole remaining, and needs all the help she can get to be completely healed and free of her burden. She also speaks a dialect that very few of our Day Crew or other patients speak, and though we do the best we can, she does not have the benefit of the same friendship and community that the other ladies form. The psychological healing is just as essential as the physical when it comes to obstetric fistula.

I'll keep you posted.

-D