OVERVIEW
The FIRST ASSIST—SkyHydrant GEM Rapid Response Pack (FIRST ASSIST—RRP) is an emergency water treatment system that provides 5,000 litres of safe drinking water per day. It has been designed to be installed in 2-3 hours using only the fittings and tools supplied in the “drum” pack. Once emergency conditions have ceased, it can easily be augmented into a long-term installation.
It is a compact pack with a total weight of less than 20kg and can be transported within an airline ‘checked-in luggage limits’ for fast and efficient deployment. All of the critical items included ensure a short-term, safe potable water installation. Disaster Aid Australia (DAA) and SkyJuice Foundation developed this design based on extensive field experience and feedback.

FIRST ASSIST – RAPID RESPONSE PACK CONTENT
Plastic Barrel (containing all other components)
SkyHydrant GEM with plumbing fittings pre-installed
Hoses and other required fittings
A pre-filter
All hand tools needed for installation
OPTIONS FOR WATER SUPPLY
The following methods can fill the header tank;
- Gravity piped water
- Pressure supply (tap)
- Pump (hand or powered)
- Buckets directly into the head tank
OPERATOR TRAINING
Once the unit provides water, a reliable local should be selected and trained as the main operator. A pictorial laminated Operators Guide in English is provided to assist with operator training. (Where possible, this will be replaced by an operator’s guide in the local language.)
SUGGESTIONS FOR LONGER TERM INSTALLATIONS
An initial installation will provide filtered, bacteria free free safe water. The following upgrade actions are strongly recommended after the initial response:
Investigate the source water to check there are no contaminants
Providing a drained concrete base for the SkyHydrant
Enclose the SkyHydrant in a lockable shed
Providing drained pavement around the taps
Bury or secure locally purchased pipes to protect them from damage
LIMITATIONS
All SkyHydrants (GEM or MAX design) will remove dirt particles and bacteria but will not remove dissolved chemicals or salinity. Testing the feed water for TDS and pH before establishing a water supply is always recommended.
SET-UP OPTIONS
Three main set options have been identified.
Option 1 – Where no containers are available for tanks, use the plastic barrel as the head tank.
Option 2 – When it is possible to locate a container to use as a head tank (can be as small as 20 litres), the plastic barrel can be used as a filtered water tank.
Option 3 – Where larger plastic tanks are quickly available to be used as a filtered water tank, the plastic barrel can be used as a head tank.
In situations where Option 1 or 2 are used as an initial set-up, every effort should be made to upgrade to the Option 3 set-up during the period of the deployment.
OPTION 1 – UTILISING FIRST ASSIST RRP CONTENTS ONLY
This configuration will be the most likely set-up used as an immediate solution.
NOTE: In an emergency, the Head Tank can be filled using buckets.

OPTION 2 – ADDING A SMALL HEAD TANK
The tank can be as small as 20 litres capacity.
NOTE: In an emergency the Head Tank can be filled using buckets.

OPTION 3 – ADDING A LARGE, FILTERED WATER TANK
The tank can be up to 2,000 litres capacity.
