What would happen if the roof of a witchott started leaking?
If a leak developed in the roof, children would climb up the outside using rope or wood ladders and replace the leaky mat. The rope ladders had to be long enough so that they could reach from one side of the house to the other. One (heavier) person would stand or hold the ladder on one side while the child climbed up the other side. Children had to do the climbing and mending because the bent saplings that formed the frame of the witchott weren’t very strong. The family would probably have made a few extra grass and reed mats ahead of time and kept them in their witchott in case a leak developed.
