WorldWide Drilling Resource®

To be noticed, give us a call: (850) 547-0102 or e-mail: wwdr@worldwidedrillingresource.com 12 JUNE 2020 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® by Tim Rasmussen Rig Stuck Part 1 The sky had finally stopped raining. It had been continuous for 24 hours, but was now clearing, and the breeze signaled a welcome change in the weather. It would finally be good enough to start the drill and finish the well. The village is named Emanuel and is a hard two-hour drive to get to. The road to the village starts out well enough, but gets progressively poorer until finally it is just a single track into the jungle. The whole area is like a huge swamp. Edgar had taken the Mayhew rotary drill there just before the rain began, and he was anxious to get out. By late afternoon, he had finished drilling the hole and was satisfied with the amount of water available. It is always a guess, especially in wet weather and in wet places like this, but there was lots of clean water coming up, so he packed up the rig and started out. He did not get far. About 100 yards from the edge of the village, he had to go through an area wetter than the rest. The villagers had built up the track to cross it, like a causeway, and had installed a couple of concrete culverts for the water to flow through. Like everything usually is in Guatemala, it was done just well enough to get by. The road was built by wheelbarrow loads of rough rock and fine material, and the past day of rain had raised the water level and turned the road into a slippery mess. As Edgar drove out onto the causeway, he was mindful of the heavy load of drill pipe racked on the right side of the truck. He wanted to keep this in the middle of the road, but he erred in how far toward the middle. As he edged to the left, the truck suddenly lurched more to the left and down. For a moment, it seemed it would roll over, but it stopped. He shut off the engine and gingerly got out. The truck was at a crazy angle. The right front wheel was off the ground by a foot. The chassis was high, centered on the bank of the causeway. What to do? The villagers came out to see the problem. There was some attempt to make sure there were stones under the low side wheels, but there was really nothing to do. The villagers had advice, but no assistance. Edgar was worried sick about what happened. He tried his phone and luckily, there was cell service. He was able to get in touch with Jon at the shop and tell him. Jon could hear the anxiety in his voice. Edgar sent him a few photos. Jon told him Jay was on the way with a pump truck to set the pump for the village, and should be there soon. Whatever the situation, it would have to wait. Edgar was glad Jay would soon be there. [To be continued in the July issue.] 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

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