Stoves / Open Flame Safety

 

 

 

Luke 3:11 “John answered, ‘the man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same.’”

Most people in Barrio La Cruz cook with open fires inside of their homes. Many women and children suffer respiratory problems and children are frequently burned. The World Health Organization reports that the leading cause of death in Guatemalan children under 5 is falling into these fires. The fires also produce dangerous levels of carbon dioxide.

Paso a Paso is working to replace open fires with enclosed wood burning stoves. In addition to being safer, these stoves use 70% less wood, helping reduce deforestation and the time needed to collect wood. The stoves are built off the floor, eliminating the risk of burns for small children. They vent outside of the house and create less smoke, reducing the carbon monoxide fumes and increasing the life of the stove.

Paso a Paso has has installed stoves in about 5% of Barrio La Cruz homes. Our goal is to install 10 stoves a year, until everyone in the community has a safe stove to cook on. The cost to install a stove is approximately $300.