WorldWide Drilling Resource®

by Tim Rasmussen Rig Stuck Part 2 When Jay pulled up, he was amazed at what he saw. The rig was tilted far to the driver’s side. The rear duals were completely under water. The right front tire was off the ground. He looked at the right rear dual - the outside tire was just barely touching the road, and he could have easily pulled a rock out from under it. There was no weight on the outside tire. The truck was precariously perched. The only thing holding the rig from rolling into the water was the heavy load of drill pipe racked on the passenger side. Later that evening, there were multiple calls back to Gary. It was deter- mined the best way to try and recover the rig was to employ the services of a large trackhoe to try and lift the rig up and out of the water. Edgar knew someone with such a machine, and made the call. Providently, the man with the trackhoe was available and promised to bring it out to Emanuel the next morning. When Jay and Edgar arrived the next day, it was easy to see the rig had settled a little more and was even more precar- iously perched, if that was possible. Getting into the water, Jay set about assessing the situation more closely. There was nothing under the outside rear dual wheel. It was a dangerous place to be if the rig should roll. He and Edgar worked gently, making sure not to disturb the rig. When the trackhoe arrived, Jay was relieved to see it was a big one. They unloaded the machine and had a discussion about how best to deal with the scene. The language differences made the conversation difficult, but they got through it. Jay vetoed any idea of trying to use the hoe to put pressure on the rear of the rig. The only way was to lift the rig and then move it back onto the road. Jay got down in the water again and, by ducking under, was able to fasten the only length of rated chain he had under the side of the rig, hooking it securely to the chassis. The free end was attached to the bucket of the trackhoe with the only good shackle they had. The lifting was done very gently and slowly. After two hours, the rig was safely back on the roadway. There was no apparent damage to the undercarriage. The dri- veshaft was good, the axles and springs okay too. The rig was started and moved off the causeway, safely hugging the middle of the road this time. Later at the shop, it was determined that in the lifting of the rig, the mast stan- chions had been bent slightly. In a little while, they were straightened and every- thing checked. The rig was ready to go back to work. Looking back, it was easy to see some contributing factors. Edgar is short, and the seat of the rig is broken, so it does not allow him to see well over the hood. The culvert under the road had collapsed due to the water flow and the heavy load. There was no layer of coarse rock for a base to the road. Whatever was there had never been compacted. All these things worked to make this accident happen, but once again, the Good Lord had his hand over Water For Life, to keep us working, bringing clean safe water to the people of rural villages of Guatemala. 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 21 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® JULY 2020 WTR