WorldWide Drilling Resource®

14 AUGUST 2020 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® by Tim Rasmussen Casa Agua Azul is a small orphanage in the town of Rio Dulce, about two hours south of Poptun, Guatemala. There are 17 children there who have no one except the kind folks who run it; and they had an immediate problem. There was no water. There was supposed to be water. The city of Rio Dulce had promised water and, for a little while, there had been some, but something had changed and the city water had been cut off. They bought the drinking water, but all they could do was carry buckets from the river for washing, laundry, and other needs. They had to do something to solve the problem; so they tried as best they could. They bought 300 feet of ¾-inch plastic pipe and dug a trench out to the edge of the river. They were able to buy a small pump and someone helped them get it hooked up so it would fill the cistern. The results were a disappointment. There was no pressure. It got clogged up repeatedly with small shells. They bought a larger pump. Still no joy. They knew nothing about friction loss or water systems. The whole thing was useless and a waste of the little money they had. Then a man named Jay Gallagher showed up. He was a volunteer for Water For Life and had been working for them installing pumps in the Petén region. He was trying to get back to the U.S., but COVID-19 had changed everything. No flights were leaving. He was kind of stuck there. Jay had learned about Casa Azul from another group in Rio Dulce he had helped previously - Casa Guatemala, which is a large day school for children. He had fixed a pump problem for them a couple of years ago, and when he checked in with them, they told him about the water problem at Casa Azul. Jay was interested. It took about 30 minutes for Jay to look the system over and figure out what was wrong. He knew about friction loss and water systems. He told them he could fix it, but they needed to buy some larger diameter pipe. They found 300 feet of 1¼-inch plastic pipe at the hardware store and another visitor bought it for them. He found a foot valve with a strainer setup, and bought it too. Casa Azul hired two men who were willing to dig the ditch and Jay supervised the installation. They ran the pipe out into the river and Jay hooked up the pump. This time, there was joy. They had 35 pounds per square inch of pressure with the tap wide open - lots of water for laundry, kitchen, and bathing. The kind folks who ran the orphanage were ecstatic. The big problem was over. Now they could focus on the problems of life with 17 children in a poor country. Water For Life is about changing lives. Our volunteers do the work, we provide the opportunity. Guatemala is full of oppor- tunity and lives that need changing. Will you help? We have drills. You have skills. If you have the desire, please join us in making the world a better place - one well at a time. If you would like to help, contact Gary Bartholomew at 509-466-5075 or 509-939-1941 Tim Tim Rasmussen may be contacted via e-mail to michele@worldwidedrillingresource.com WTR Blasting by: RAM, Inc. BEST (Blasting and Explosive Safety Training) Special September 9-11 ~ Rapid City, SD phone: 740-363-6976 www.ramets.com Drilling Fluids by: WYO-BEN, Inc. Mud School Education Connection September 14-18 ~ Billings, MT phone: 406-652-6351 www.wyoben.com Drilling Fundamentals by: ADSC (The International Association of Foundation Drilling) DROS (Drill Rig Operators School) September 13-18 ~ San Antonio, TX phone: 469-359-6000 www.adsc-iafd.com Irrigation by: Rain Bird Academy Training September 1-3 ~ Ft. Myers, FL September 14-18 ~ San Diego, CA Sept. 22-24 ~ West Palm Beach, FL September 29-October 1 ~ Miami, FL phone: 800-498-1942 www.rainbirdservices.com Pumps by: Cornell Pump Company Pump School September 15-17 ~ ONLINE phone: 503-653-0330 www.cornellpump.com More education opportunities during events can be found online at: worldwidedrillingresource.com