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Mission: Possible

20 December 2021 | Story Igno van Niekerk | Photo Igno van Niekerk

Drs Pearce and Potgieter — Dr Samantha Potgieter, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Internal Medicine and Dr Nicholas Pearce, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Surgery comment on their team members’ commitment and determination during the pandemic.

On the forefront of the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic, two UFS doctors are leading a team of inspired healthcare workers in a superhuman effort to make a positive difference.

With the pandemic in its second year and the recurring challenges of new waves and strains consistently in the news, one would expect the doctors to be tired. However, quite the opposite is true. Upon entering the office where Dr Samantha Potgieter, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Internal Medicine and Dr Nicholas Pearce, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Surgery are in a meeting with colleagues, the debate is vibrant; an energetic sense of mission.

Miraculously succeeded

My brief is to collect stories and experiences they’ve had over the past 18 months at the Tumelo ward for general and high-care patients, where the team has miraculously succeeded in not running out of oxygen or ventilators, despite handling high volumes of patients from the Free State and Northern Cape. “We saw those pictures of piled-up bodies in Italy. We were committed to avoiding that at all costs. And we did.”

Success stories? First mentioned are their team members’ commitment and determination. The team had to stand in when families could not support dying patients. “They did not die alone. Our team was there.”

“Really sad and frustrating are the deaths that could have been prevented. Unvaccinated patients. They arrive ill, wanting to know if they can get it. Too late...” – Dr Nicholas Pearce

Then came hope

Sad stories? The past year has had its share of sad stories. “Someone comes in during the morning, needs oxygen, in the afternoon they are in ICU, then ventilator – and then they die. We’ve never faced anything like this before.”

Then came hope. Vaccines. Dr Pearce is in charge of the vaccination site at Universitas Hospital. “Really sad and frustrating are the deaths that could have been prevented. Unvaccinated patients. They arrive ill, wanting to know if they can get it. Too late ...” He opens his cell phone – shares the stats. “We can handle 2 000 vaccinations a day. At the moment about 250 comes in.” He shakes his head.

“We can beat this virus, but we need to stand together ...”

News Archive

Scientists discover a water reservoir beneath the Free State

2009-12-09

Dr Holger Sommer

The Mantle Research Group Bloemfontein (MRGB), under the leadership of Dr Holger Sommer, a senior lecturer in the Department of Geology at the University of the Free State (UFS), has discovered an enormous water reservoir 160 km beneath the Free State.

This discovery, according to Dr Sommer, is the first of its kind in South Africa after he had previously made a similar finding in Colorado, USA.

However, this water cannot be used for human consumption. “It is not frozen water; it is not molecular water; it is not fresh water; it is not salty water; it is OH – water which is sitting in the crystal lattice,” he said.

He said the reservoir was comparable in size to Lake Victoria in Tanzania.
The researchers collected eclogites from the Roberts Victor (Rovic) Mine close to the town of Boshof, south-west of the Free State, for their study.

“The Rovic eclogites are rocks which represent former oceanic crust transported into the earth’s interior by complex plate tectonic processes about 2.0 billion years ago,” explained Dr Sommer.

“These rocks were finally carried back to the earth’s surface by volcanic (kimberlite) eruptions around 130 million years ago. Eclogitic rocks are therefore a window into the Earth’s interior.”

The question from the beginning for all MRGB scientists was: Is there water inside these rocks in such depth, and if so, where is it located?

To answer this question, Dr Sommer and his research fellows separated single mineral grains from eclogite samples and prepared about 100 micrometer (0,1 mm) thick rock sections. Afterwards, specific particle accelerator (Synchrotron) measurements were carried out in the city of Karlsruhe in Germany.

“And indeed, the MRGB found water inside the studied rocks from the Roberts Victor Mine,” he said. “The water was located in defect structures in crystal lattices and along boundaries between single mineral grains.”

“The occurrence of water at such depth would give first evidence that all water of the oceans could be stored five to ten times in the earth’s mantle.”
The study was conducted about a year ago.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt.stg@ufs.ac.za
4 December 2009

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