Bye Bye Burkina….

(Published 21st May 2014)

It’s finally arrived….the day that seemed so far in the future, is now almost upon me… home time!! Don’t get me wrong, I love being in Burkina, doing what we do, but when you get close to the time to go home it starts to become a focus for your thoughts. Anyway, as usual, we’ve had a busy time since getting home from Djibo! (ok, I may have taken a couple of easier days as I wasn’t feeling too hot…may have been malaria, maybe not, but the anti-malarial drugs seemed to do the trick!) On the Tuesday, we got the trucks moved out to the site for a new SIM school a couple of kilometers from our yard and Mark drilled a well that day – the 36th well of the season! 🙂 Thursday saw us head out to Fada, 200km from Ouaga, to visit some of the proposed well sites for next season, giving the opportunity to meet with the villagers, to assess the need, survey the ground, and check access for the trucks – these visits are pretty important! We managed to visit 3 sites that day, before heading back to Ouaga….just about staying awake for the drive home! Friday was spent out at the yard, trying to get things sorted out for the the time that we’re away….get the trucks parked up (including getting the old rig started and moving – not as easy as it sounds); make sure all tools are locked away; sort out all the screen/liner/riser pipes into batches; etc etc – we scratched the surface, there’s still more to be done! Monday morning, and it was off to Piela in the east of the country to survey another 5 sites in that region, plus do some pump analysis on the well that we had drilled in Piela at the start of the season. Thankfully this time we had the sense to take 2 days for the trip, which was good as a couple of the village meetings took longer interesting turns in the conversations and took time to figure out the best way forward. Sometimes (usually!), it’s just not as simple as turning up in a place and drilling a hole in the ground!

Tomorrow (Wednesday) will be spent at the yard, trying to finalise everything there, and finish up the bane of our lives…paperwork! Thursday….pack….eat….get to the airport (and hopefully onto the plane)….sleep!

Looking back, it seems like it was only yesterday that I arrived in Burkina; and at the same time it feels like I’ve been here for years. It has been an amazing experience – and one that I would not change for anything! Seeing the Lord at work, both in my life and other people’s; seeing prayer being answered; knowing that you’re making a real difference to people’s lives; working alongside some great folks from all over the world; and having great fun whilst doing all this…what’s not to love about this ‘job’!

Saying that, here’s some things that I won’t miss for the 3 months that I’m back in N.Ireland…

temperatures over 120degF
constant power cuts (especially in hot season, when all you want is a fan/AC)
mosquitoes
dust….. everywhere
atrocious driving (cars driving straight at you in your lane; drivers making a third (or fourth) lane, when there’s clearly only 2 lanes; moto riders thinking they’re invincible and not looking where they’re going; drivers overtaking at the most inappropriate times; the list could go on forever…!)
dirt roads – once the novelty wears off, they’re just a pain to drive
ham, cheese and tomato sandwiches everyday, cos there’s really nothing else to fill them with
arriving at a drill site at 7pm, thinking “we’ll just stick a pilot hole in the ground to see what we’re up against”, and deciding at 3am that we really should have stopped with the pilot hole, and not cased the hole and drilled it to full depth cos we’re going to suffer badly in the morning
driving from one end of the country in a truck that does not have AC
Landrovers
trying to get by in French…..it’s improving, but still needs a bit of work!
there’s more, but that’ll do for now!

God willing, I’ll be home on Friday afternoon 🙂 I’m really looking forward to seeing friends and family; getting down to the Mournes; getting out on the bike; climbing at Fairhead (or trying to climb – it’s been too long); driving my wee car again; heading out to get a decent coffee and tray bake; worshiping at Carrick Baptist; getting an icecream (strawberries and cream) from Mauds; going to the cinema; the list goes on…good thing I have a couple of months to fit it all in!!

Ivory Coast plus…

(Published 11th May 2014)

The past month has seemed to be non-stop, between drilling in Ivory Coast, Ouaga, and in the north of Burkina. Here’s a brief synopsis of how things went…

Left Ouaga 30th March, and returned 17th April
Took 3 days to drive to Golikro, the village that we were working at in Ivory Coast (100km to the east of Yamoussoukro) – over 1200km away
Partnered with Steppin Out Mission. SOM provide practical support to missions around the world. In this case, they were constructing a Bible school in Golikro, for the training of local pastors, and had a team of 10 men and 2 ladies from the States.

Golikro is a village of a couple of thousand people, yet only has 1 pump to provide safe clean water. FIA originally planned to drill wells in this village over 10 years ago, but the civil war stopped that happening…

Part of Golikro
Animism is still very prevalent in Ivory Coast, despite there being many churches.
Plenty of interesting wildlife (eg. snakes!) spotted, but thankfully no up-close and personal encounters!
Drilled 5 holes in Golikro – beside a clinic, beside the church, at the new Bible school, in the area planned for village expansion, beside the primary school – giving 4 great wells (the hole at the Bible school could not be developed into a well).

Issaka dancing with some of the village children!

Moved to a neighbouring village, and drilled there….after getting one of the trucks stuck in mud! Got a fantastic well.

Decided we had just enough time to risk drilling a final well in another neighbouring village, and were blessed with a 6th well.
9 days of drilling in IC, giving 6 wells – a real answer to prayer!
Travelled to Abidjan on Saturday/Sunday to say farewell to the SOM team. (we managed to get 2 speeding tickets, one for doing 123kmh – in a truck that doesn’t even do 123km/h!; and one 5km further along the same road for doing 93km/h – because a pickup like ours is only allowed to do 90km/h, even though there’s no signs to tell you that…grrr, there’s nothing like a bit of corruption to get you annoyed!)
Monday morning, 5am, started the journey back to Burkina – crossed the border Tuesday morning, and were close to Ouaga by that evening.
Wednesday we kept rolling past Ouaga, and instead went to Yako, 100km north of Ouaga to drill a well there; partnering with Sheltering Wings mission who run an orphanage in Yako. By Wednesday night we had a great well!
Thursday morning we finished up the well, and drove back to Ouaga….and collapsed!!
On Wednesday (23^rd) we were back at the yard sorting stuff out, and looking at our next job
Thursday morning saw us drive into Sector 30 – a very poor area in Ouaga – to drill with C&MA at a handicap centre. We got a great well!
Finished the well on Friday morning, and got the trucks back out to our yard.
On the Monday (28^th) we installed the pump at the handicap centre well, and got to meet a lot of the people who are being helped through the centre.
Tuesday we moved the trucks to Nabadogo, 70km outside Ouaga.
Wednesday, we started drilling, and soon found ourselves playing in a lot of mud… Even with the mud pump we were unfortunately unable to turn it into a useable well…
Thursday, we were back in Nabadogo to pack up the trucks, and bring one of them back to Ouaga.
Friday, we got the other truck back to Ouaga, got a lot of paperwork done, and I started packing up my stuff so that I could move to my new house on the Saturday!
Monday (5^th May) saw us drive the 200km north to Djibo – 100km on a good road, 100km on one of the most teeth-shattering roads that I know! (we had to stop several times to pick up things that bounced of the trucks….spare tyres, drill pipe covers, the step from the drill rig..!) It took us longer than we had hoped to get to the village, so it was already dark when we were starting to drill. Thankfully, everything went smoothly, and at 3am we were going to bed knowing that we had a great well!
Up early on the Tuesday morning to get the well completed, as we had to head back to Ouaga that afternoon.
Wednesday morning, and we were back on the road up to Djibo! This time, however, there was posse of us – Steve and Charlie (the missionaries who we were working with at these villages in Djibo) and their 2 girls; Phil and Carolyn – missionaries who are involved in work with the Fulani (the people-group that are in this area); Brendan – another missionary from Ouaga; Ruth, Mark, Issaka, and myself. We headed to the first village to finish off the well there, then packed up and rolled to the next village. Once again it was getting dark by the time we were starting, though that means that the temperature is much more pleasant!!
We kept drilling late into the night, and it was funny to stand at the drill rig controls and see all the children (and a few grown-ups) lying on the ground sleeping!

Drilling is tiring work!

Thursday morning we continued drilling down to 310ft – we got a well…not a great one, but sufficient for a hand pump. As we had a bite of lunch, and built up the enthusiasm to pull out the drill rods, we saw the clouds gathering to the east…and these were not the usual nimbus or cirrus clouds, but dust clouds! We started pulling out the rods as quickly as possible, but the dust storm hit us before we were finished – it was pretty horrible working in it! Then, the dust settled, and the rain started…an absolute downpour (apparently it was over an inch of rain in less than an hour). We were scared that the trucks would get bogged down in the soft sand, so we kept working to get the equipment up to higher ground – by the end, we were all soaked to the skin and frozen…not what you expect when working at the southern edge of the Sahara Desert!
Friday saw us head back to Ouaga – thankfully, a pretty uneventful journey!

So, that’s pretty much what we’ve been up to the past 6 weeks! It’s been busy, but the Lord has really blessed the work. It was great to get to Ivory Coast, and see a different country (much greener, more prosperous, much cleaner, more rain!). It was also good to get up to Djibo to drill, and see another part of Burkina…

The next few days will hopefully see us drill a final well here in Ouaga, get the trucks parked up for the rainy season, do some work around the yard, visit a few sites for next season, and pack in preparation for heading home next Thursday (22^nd) – it’s so hard to believe that we’re now at the end of the season! It’ll be tough leaving Burkina knowing that there is still so much work to be done, but we’ll be back in September, DV – hopefully feeling well rested and raring to go again!

Here’s a couple of links to blogs and YouTube videos of the last couple of wells that we drilled:

http://benandmollycollins.blogspot.com/2014/05/our-first-well-drilling-experience.html

http://voiceinthedesert.org.uk/weblog/2014/05/07/drilling-for-water-in-the-north-of-burkina-faso/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nx-8dSaJO5Y&feature=youtu.be

The final team…

(Published 29th March 2014)

March – it’s the start of hot season, and you really notice the temperature ramping up…. By the middle of the morning you’re looking for any shade you can find; you start walking at the pace of the locals (there’s a good reason the Africans walk slowly); a glass of cold water is warm by the time you finish drinking it; you think twice about picking up any metal tools with your bare hands; and you’re hoping that when the sun sets that the temperature will go down with it (which isn’t always the case). ..! These are the conditions that greeted the 12 men arriving in for the final drill team of the season –welcome to Burkina in March!!

As usual, we left Ouaga on Sunday morning to get to the first town, Boromo – a major town on the main Ouaga – Bobo road – and we were drilling at the site of an established C&MA church. However, there is no water on the side of town where the church is located, so they were hoping that a well could be drilled beside the church. Unfortunately, though we drilled down to 280 feet on the 2 surveyed spots, not a drop of water was found…. We also discovered that a pinhole – so small that you literally could not see it – in a hydraulic pipe, can bring the whole drilling operation to a standstill. After a couple of hours of trying to fix the problem ourselves, we admitted defeat and sent the pipe into town to get mended. As someone commented at the time, it was a great illustration of how even ‘just a little sin’ in our lives is a very big problem – and one that we cannot fix ourselves.

Slightly dis-spirited, we headed out into the bush, and to a village called Naheridon. When you arrive in a village like this the first thing that strikes you is the evident hardship of living in such a place – the ground is barren, many children have no clothes, there’s obvious malnutrition, and filthy water is being scooped out of a hole in the ground… We had drilled at this village last season, and though we had just about got a well, it clogged up with mud before the pump could even be installed so was never able to be used. This year we had a trick up our sleeve – the mud pump on our new rig! This was going to be our first time to use it, so it was with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation that we starting using it…. It wasn’t all plain sailing, and a bit of head-scratching was done, but by Thursday evening we had a great well that was giving clean, safe water – praise the Lord! Over the next week or so, 1000 youth are getting together in Naheridon for a conference and so the well and the story of the well are providing a wonderful means to give glory to God.

From Naheridon, we moved a few kilometres down the road to the village of Tankiedougou. It was now late Friday morning, and we were planning to head back to Ouaga for the weekend to get some rest and restock supplies, so we just had time to set up the rig and drill a pilot hole to see what we were going to be up against. At 100 feet we stopped, convinced Mark that it was time to leave(!), and started the 300km/7hr journey back to Ouaga. Saturday was spent taking things easy, and catching up on the rugby & football from back home, before heading back down the road again on Sunday. Early Monday morning saw us start drilling again, and once again the mud pump was called into action. It was a good thing that we had got such a great well in the previous village, as mud-drilling needs a LOT of water! (not always the handiest thing, considering that we’re trying to find water for people in areas where there is no water!) Thankfully, the mud pump once again allowed us to drill a good well in a village where previously we couldn’t have drilled due to the ground conditions. The third well of the trip was also a Tankiedougou, but this time working with a mission called Shattering the Darkness, and did not require the mud pump, so was a whole lot faster! At this well, I finally decided that although I quite like yams, yams do not like me….over the past few trips we’ve had yams for dinner 3 times, and I’ve then been ill 3 times – there definitely are some occasions when you’d give anything just to be back in your own house, with your own bathroom!!
The fourth well was at a small village called Bouni, just a few kilometres further down the road, and again was at a C&MA church plant. We got a well drilled pretty quickly, and tried to get a second well drilled in the village, but unfortunately just ran out of time. We parked up the trucks, and headed back to Ouaga, and said goodbye to the team a day or so later.

Last week saw Mark and I make a 600km round trip to collect the trucks from Bouni – a 5am start, and 13 hrs of driving… I was glad to see my bed that night! We’ve also drilled a well just beside our yard, to be used for a garden project for the orphanage and school located there. I’ve been getting more used to the motorbike that I shipped out – getting it off the tarmac roads and out onto the gravel tracks is a guaranteed way to put a smile on your face! We’ve also updated the website (www.friendsinaction.org.uk) to show the location of all the wells that we’ve drilled at this season.
Now, we’re in the middle of getting everything ready for our trip to the Ivory Coast. We head away this weekend, DV, and will be away for up to 3 weeks, hopefully getting 5 wells drilled in that time.

As always, thanks for your phone calls, emails, FB messages, etc – I really do appreciate them, and apologise if I haven’t yet replied to you!! Thanks also for your prayers – very very necessary! As we give thanks for the wells that have already been drilled, please pray for the people whose lives will be changed by the clean safe water, and pray that they will hear about the Living Water, and respond to the Gospel. Please also keep our trip to the Ivory Coast in your prayers – there’s a lot of travelling, a lot of work, and it’s a long time away from friends and family…but it is exciting!

The February trip…

(Published 26th February 2014)

The February team was a joint US-NI team, and was a mix of folks who had been on previous drill teams, as well as some out for the first time. Once again, the 2 weeks started with the lovely 10 hour drive to the south west of Burkina – thankfully I managed to win the race to the new truck, so had the luxury of air con for the journey! We were returning to Sideradougou, the village that we had finished at on the last trip, in the hope of getting water on the second attempt. Unfortunately, the second hole was as dry as the first, but it did give us a good chance to figure out some of the new processes required for operating the new rig. We’ll look at getting the site resurveyed, and hopefully return there next season.

On the Tuesday, after a bit of head-scratching trying to work out how to get the trucks back onto the main road (roadworks had taken place over the previous fortnight, and a deep gully dug at the side of the road!), we moved 200km northwards to Poundou – the site of a C&MA Bible school. This school hosts 90 students, plus their families, who live on the campus and trains them to be pastors in local churches. We were to drill 2 wells at the school – one to provide water for the students (the existing well struggles to cope with the demand); and a second to provide water for the Bible school garden, where the students can grow their own vegetables.

Over the Wednesday and Thursday, these 2 wells were drilled, both going very smoothly, and both giving very good flows of water. On the Friday morning we packed up and started moving to the next village – as we drove past the classroom at the Bible school the pupils came out and sang us a blessing…there really is something beautiful about African singing!

Students at the Bible school singing us a blessing as we drove away

It seems that with each team, a specific village stands out as a little bit special…. Ganta in November, and Kongodaga in January immediately spring to mind. This time it was the village of Dora, where there is a small C&MA church. As we arrived in the village we were immediately being told of how many wells had previously been drilled in the village (12 attempts) but none had given water, or only a very poor supply of muddy water. Setting up the equipment, then committing the work to the Lord in prayer, we started drilling. At 50 feet we started getting muddy water, but this was not the safe clean groundwater that we want so we kept on drilling. At 200 feet the ground got very clayey, and there was a real risk of getting the drill stuck, but we kept carefully drilling. By 10pm we had drilled to 240 feet and there was a small amount of water, but nowhere near enough for a pump. The crowds of folks watching had dwindled to just a few folks, and even the pastor was at the point of turning in for the night. A Twitter update was put out, asking folks to pray, and we kept pressing on… At 255 feet we hit a great supply of water, soaking the few handy souls who were still watching us! The pastor lost any thoughts of heading to his bed, and instead joined us as we stopped the work and had a time of prayer and thanksgiving! We continued drilling to 280 feet, then spent the next couple of hours pulling most of the drill rods back out of the hole – we went to bed late, but happy, with songs of rejoicing in our hearts. The next day we finished pulling out the rods and lined the well, discovering that the water was under such pressure that it rose to just a few feet from the surface! When the team went back a few days later to install the pump, they were told that two men had been amazed that God had provided water in this well, when so many others had tried and failed to find water. As a result, they had spoken to the pastor about the Gospel and, praise the Lord, committed their lives to Christ. Another man, who had fallen away from his faith in the Lord, spoke to the pastor and recommitted his live to Christ as a result of seeing God answering prayer in that place. We serve an awesome God!!

After Dora, we moved a few kilometres down the road to Sara. There is a small C&MA church there, but they are looking to build a new church and therefore need a well. After some initial confusion about where the new site was going to be (we had managed to squeeze the trucks into a pretty tight spot, only to be told that the actual surveyed site was a couple of kilometres away on the other side of the road…grrrrr!) we parked up the trucks for the weekend and headed to the C&MA guesthouse in Bobo for a day’s rest. Returning on the Monday morning we got the equipment set up and started drilling (not at the actual surveyed spots, as they were at the top of a hill, with no path to them, and there was no way we could get the trucks up there!!) Usually, we drill down anything from 30 to 80 feet with a large diameter bit until we hit solid rock, then set casing pipe to hold back the loose earth while we drill deeper, but in this case solid rock was at ground level so we could immediately start using our smaller drill bit – that saved so much time and effort!! By the evening, we had drilled down to 240 feet, hit a great flow of water, and almost washed away our camp! The water here was almost chocolate brown in colour, but after a lot of pumping cleared up nicely…. That water wasn’t wasted – the local believers used it to start making mud bricks for the new church!

The final village for this trip was Kereba. There is a well-established C&MA church in the village, and they also run an ‘alphabetisation’ course here that is a feeder for the Bible school in Poundou. There’s going to be a ladies conference held here in a couple of weeks time, that they expect several hundred ladies to attend, so they required a good source of water. The first hole that we drilled gave a very good supply at quite a shallow depth. Unfortunately, a couple of pieces of the casing unscrewed as I drilled and partially blocked the flow of water into the well. We decided to move to another spot and try again. After not too many rods we abandoned this hole – the amount of mud being spat out of the hole was unbelievable (and quite funny at times), but also meant that the hole was going to become unworkable. So, we moved to a third spot, set up the equipment again, and started drilling a pilot hole, just to see what the ground conditions were like… At 50 feet or so it was evident that this hole was a bit special – the water was flowing out of the ground even when we had switched off the air! Basically, we had an artesian well, which is very unusual! Unfortunately, as we tried to work the hole to turn it into a usable well the hole silted up and blocked the flow. So, we went back to the first hole and tried to develop it as much as possible by blowing it out with air to clean up the water. It’s a viable well, but it’s frustrating to know how much better it could have been… We’ll probably end up going back to Kereba before too long, to see if we can develop that artesian well!!

The trip back to Ouaga on the Friday was pretty uneventful (though a bit warmer for me since Mark had commandeered the new truck!), and Saturday evening saw us say goodbye to the folks from N.Ireland.
The past week and a half have seen us take things a bit easier – not necessarily by choice for Mark, as he wasn’t well for a few days, but the rest has been much needed. We’ve got our visas sorted for the upcoming trip to the Ivory Coast – the lady at the embassy remembered us from last year, and was inquiring whether or not my marital status was the same as last year..! On Tuesday, we drove to Djibo in the north of Burkina to visit 2 villages where we hope to drill before the end of the season. This was the first time that I’ve been to the north, so I was looking forward to seeing the countryside and towns in this part of the country – it’s much more barren than the land around Ouaga or in the south of Burkina (well, it is the edge of the Sahara Desert), and villages had more of a Arabic feel to them. Thankfully we were able to make the return journey in one day, though I’m not sure if my back will for forgive me for the abuse it took on some of the roads!!
Saturday evening sees the final team for the season arriving – 5 men from Northern Ireland, 2 from England, and 5 for the States – it’s going to be a big crowd heading out to the bush! Hopefully that means we’ll be able to pace ourselves a bit more, as it’s starting to heat up quite a bit and it’s easy to wear yourself out. Please be praying for us as we travel and work – that we would be kept in safety, and that we would find water for these needy villages; but more importantly, that people would turn to Christ, and that we would be faithful witnesses to the Gospel.

New Year….new rig (almost!)

(Published 31st January 2014)

The January drill team arrived into Ouaga on Saturday 4th January – I had arrived into town on the Thursday evening, not giving us much time to get things ready for heading out to the bush…sure, a bit of pressure helps one focus! This team comprised of 6 men from Saintfield, plus Chris – a Canadian who has been out with FIA a couple of times before. As usual, an early start on the Sunday morning saw most of us on the road (3 of the Saintfield team were staying in Ouaga for a couple of days to do some much need electrical work at Mark & Louise’s house), but this time we had the new rig with us… 🙂 All went surprisingly smoothly, and we arrived in Mangodara late that evening. In the morning we packed up, checked over the trucks that we had left there after the last team, and started the 100km journey to the first drill site.

The work for this team was based around 4 villages where the C&MA have small churches, and are seeking to help the church grow and reach out into the local communities. The first village, Logue, was sited 13km from the main road, and that final 13km was on one of the more interesting ‘roads’ that I’ve been on! It proved a good test for the new rig – we managed to break the frame that supports the mast during transit, but a spot of welding and a few straps allowed us to continue our journey and get to the village just as darkness fell.

In the morning we had the excitement of getting the new rig set up and ready for drilling, only to discover that a crucial part was still in someone’s shed back in Northern Ireland – oops! So, the new rig was moved out of the way, the old one rolled into place, and a few phone calls made back to the lads still in Ouaga to get a piece fabricated that would allow us to use the new rig at the next site. Over that evening and the next day we drilled down to 240ft but unfortunately got nothing but dust. Mark did a bit of scouting about, looking at the ground features and location of other wells – after some negotiations we had a new site to drill at, and thankfully this time we hit water!

Friday morning saw us move to the next village, Pambiesokura. Thankfully, this time the church was located just beside the main road, and all equipment made it there intact! After the customary introductions and welcomes, we set up the equipment (the old rig – a major welding job was taking place on the new one to beef-up the mast support!) and started drilling. Unfortunately the ground conditions were very difficult to work with, and the sidewalls of the hole kept collapsing in making impossible to keep the hole open. So, on Saturday morning it was time for Mark to take another walk and look for a new site, whilst I got the rig ready for moving… A new site was selected – slightly further away from the church, but closer to the village – and the locals started clearing the ground for us to get the trucks in place. By tea-time we had drilled to 140ft, had a good well, and decided that we deserved a shower, a proper bed, and a decent night’s sleep, so drove 2hrs to Banfora to spend the night! On the Monday morning I finished the well whilst Mark took a drive ahead to visit the next site and check out the access (we were slightly wary after the state of the road at the first village!!)

Kongodaga is 20km off the main road, and again was on a road on which you seldom got out of first gear! On the way in to the village we passed the only water source for the people – a shallow hand-dug well, with water that was grey and smelt….

The only other option for the villagers was to travel 5km to the next town and collect well water from there. The pastor explained that almost everyone in the village was sick because of the water – it really is tragic. We were the first people to try drilling for water in that village. Thankfully, on the first attempt (and with the maiden use of our new drill rig!) we hit water and were able to give a good well!

As we pumped out the water, the church members sang and danced in praise to God for the water…. In fact, they made up a new song praising God for these men who had come to their village to drill, and for the gift of water – it was amazing to be part of that, and it was with reluctance that we packed up and started the long journey back to the main road and on to the fourth village, Sideradougou.

It was now Wednesday evening, so we only had time to drill one hole at this site since we needed to leave on the Thursday evening to get to Banfora, before heading back to Ouaga on the Friday. We drilled down to 240ft, but unfortunately there was no water…. We’ll drill the second hole at this village with the next team, DV.

The drive back to Ouaga was uneventful, except for the new (unmarked) speed bumps on the main Ouaga-Bobo road which I didn’t quite see in time…..thankfully, the truck seems to have coped ok! On Saturday night we waved goodbye to the team, and collapsed….!

On the Sunday night I was back at the airport to collect Ruth, as she arrived back in Ouaga to continue helping Louise with the home-schooling of Joshua, Rachel & Anna.

The past couple of weeks have been busy transitioning everything that we think we’ll need from the old drill rig to the new one (I’m sure we’ll discover that we’ve forgotten something!), practicing ‘mud-drilling’ with the new rig (a drilling technique used in softer formations, where the sidewalls of the hole are liable to collapse), getting ready for an audit, getting ready for the next team (who arrive in on Saturday night – 1st Feb), and trying to get some rest…the work never relents!

The verse that kept coming to me over the 2 weeks of drilling was Proverbs 16:3 – “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established”. For me it was both a challenge and a comfort – to make sure that I am doing this work only in God’s strength and for His glory; and then we will see our prayers for this work answered (not always in the way that we expect, but they are answered).

We can praise God:
For the 3 new wells that have been drilled in His name, and for the impact that they will have on the lives of so many people.
For the opportunities that the wells, and the drilling process, have provided for pastors of the church plants to talk to the villagers about the Gospel
The new drilling rig is now in use!

Please pray for:
Safe arrival of the next team (4 from NI, 4 from the US)
Safety whilst we travel and work
That God would prepare the hearts of the villagers to hear the Gospel, and that they would accept Christ
For the pastors as they work in these villages

The next team arrives…

(Published 5th January 2014)

If I thought that going home for Christmas would provide a nice relaxed time for me to recharge the batteries after a hectic few weeks, I was sadly mistaken! However, it was great to be home for a couple of weeks to catch up with family and friends, and (of course) get a proper Christmas dinner! Trying to remember everything that took place in the 4 weeks prior to coming home is proving difficult – so much was crammed into it – but I’ll try to give a brief account of the main highlights…!

The 2 weeks prior to the December team arriving were mainly spent installing hand pumps at the wells we had drilled. Thankfully, after a bit of practice, we’ve managed to get the process a little bit slicker! At the Kojonti/Manbangeni sites, the local pastor had arranged a thanksgiving service for the wells that had been drilled in the area over the past couple of seasons. Many of the villages were represented – either to say thanks for a well, or to request a well in their village…the need for clean water is never ending. Pastor Lampo took the opportunity to preach the Gospel, and we pray that lives will be impacted by the good news of Christ, and for the pastor as he faithfully works in that area.

The second drill team of the season arrived on the 30th Nov, and was a combined Northern Irish & North American team. 7am the next day saw us setting off on the 450km drive to Banfora – what a way to spend my birthday!! At Banfora we collected our trucks (we’d moved them there a couple of days previous) and set off on the final 60km to Koflande – the first village we were to drill in. This is the site of a CM&A church plant so though there is a pastor, there isn’t a church there at the moment. 3km down the road and the tool trailer decided that it no longer wanted to be towed…..its tow hitch had completely snapped! After a bit of head scratching, and of course prayer, we ended up chaining the trailer to the truck and driving (very) slowly along one of the worst roads that I’ve seen so far! We made it to Koflande in one piece, albeit slightly later than originally planned! On Monday morning we set up the equipment and started drilling. All was going smoothly – we had drilled down 60 feet, hit solid rock, and were pulling out the large drill to allow us to put in the casing. As the drill came out of the ground there was something just not right with it….half the drill-bit was still in the hole! That was the end of that hole, so we rolled forward 10 feet and started drilling again. All was going smoothly (sounds familiar) until there was a bit of a bang and we were being showered with hydraulic oil…one of the hydraulic hoses had burst! Of course, it was a size of hose that we didn’t have any spare lengths of, so that was the end of drilling for the day…. An early start on Tuesday saw Ryan, Issaka and myself head back to Banfora in the hope of sourcing some hydraulic hose – we found a pre-made hose that was just the right length, so it was back to Koflande to fit it and keep drilling. Unfortunately, the hose we had just bought couldn’t cope with the pressure and burst straightaway! Thankfully, we had also bought some plain hydraulic hose, so out came the crimping tools and we made up our own length of pipe….this time it worked! A few hours later, and we had a good well… On Wednesday morning we pumped out the well, then build the concrete base whilst Mark took one trailer to the next village, Touroukoro (having one tow-hitch to move two trailers was just time consuming). Arriving at Touroukuoro highlighted the benefits of visiting villages prior to arriving with the trucks – something we hadn’t been able to do this time. A 3 foot deep ditch separated the road from the path leading to the drill site, and the path had too many hidden tree stumps for comfort. After getting one truck & trailer combination almost stuck, out came the shovels, and a bit of filling-in of the ditch took place. Marcel, one of the church elders, took to clearing the path with gusto – I haven’t seen tree stumps removed as quickly! With all of the equipment eventually in place we started drilling and got the casing set before turning in for the night. It’s surprising how cold it can get at night when sleeping under the stars….I was very glad of my extra sleeping bag liner and jumper…maybe I’m getting acclimatised to the heat, or maybe I’m just getting soft! We continued drilling down to 240 feet, but unfortunately there was no water so Mark selected another site and we started again. This time we got down to 80feet and had a torrent of water! Since the Americans were leaving early the next morning we working on in the dark to get as much done as possible, and to give them the opportunity to say that they had drilled 2 wells. Friday morning we said goodbye to the American team, before completing the well and getting everything ready to move to the next site – a busy day!

For the next week, we were basing ourselves in the town of Mangodara, setting up a camp just outside the church… It felt very strange to basically be sleeping at the side of a ‘main’ road – I’m sure the locals wondered what we were at! The local pastor in Mangodara is Pastor Emmanuel, and it was evident from the start that his passion is to reach the people with the Gospel. He also wasn’t afraid to pitch in with the drilling, and worked tirelessly beside us! On the Saturday, we moved the equipment to the first site – a local school where the church is doing outreach, and drilled for a few hours before heading back to Banfora for one night of relative luxury (shower, proper toilet, and a bit of wi-fi!)
On Sunday evening we happened to bump into the new American team, just as we were about to head back to Mangodara, so we travelled down the road together. As we drove past a lake we were struck by the strange appearance of 3 trees in the water – there was something about them that made us stop for a closer look. Turns out that it was hundreds, if not thousands, of egrets roosting in the trees…an amazing sight. More amazing was the fact that if we hadn’t stopped we would probably have lost our new drill bit that the team had brought from Ouaga for us; it had broken through the floor of the trailer and was closed to falling out, or at least being badly damaged… I don’t believe that it can just be put down to coincidence….God is in control of all things – even birds roosting!

The next few days are slightly hazy for me…I wasn’t feeling too great for a lot of the time, and was in a ‘just get through the day’ mode! We finished the well at the school in Larabin on Monday (and played a slightly one-sided football match against the pupils), and started drilling a well just beside the church in Mangodara. This went smoothly, and by Tuesday afternoon we had finished the well and moved the trucks to the next site. We continued working on this well on Wednesday, and were among the ‘stars’ of a CM&A film that is being shot to highlight the need for clean water in Burkina…it’s just a shame that I wasn’t looking my best! Unfortunately, though there was water in this hole, it wasn’t sufficient for a well, so a new site was selected and the equipment moved on the Thursday morning….by the evening we had a completed well, bar fitting the pump – God is good! We also heard that our new rig was sitting in our yard in Ouaga – an answer to prayer! Friday was spent getting some footage of us blowing out a well, and tidying up the camp (or in my case, sitting watching this all happen), and heading back up the road to Ouaga. Saturday was the customary visit to the Artisan center, and a (thankfully) uncustomary visit to a clinic to be tested for malaria – I tested positive…that explains why I hadn’t been feeling the best! A few tablets and day of relative rest, and things were looking rosy again…!

On Monday afternoon we got a call that our container was being released from custom – a few frantic calls, and a lorry was arranged to bring it to our yard. That evening, Mark and I went out to ‘just have a quick look’, since we were both wrecked…. a few hours later and we had a decent amount of the Gospel literature emptied out! On Tuesday morning we got the container lifted off the lorry, and were able to start emptying it in earnest…by 11 o’clock that night we had everything out except the new trailer (we couldn’t get the air brakes released), and a few tools that were trapped behind the trailer. It was just like Christmas morning, and getting lots and lots of exciting presents! Wednesday saw the trailer finally being pulled out of the container, and me doing a bit of hasty packing before flying home for Christmas!

So, that’s a taste of how things went at the end of 2013. It was a great time, and I have so much to be thankful for:
– Working with great folks from across the world – men who have servant’s hearts and want to see the lives of people in Burkina improved by the provision of safe water and, more importantly, transformed by the power of the Gospel.
– Having friends from home out on the team – it really was a blessing!
– The new rig and container making it safely to Ouaga.
– Seeing examples of God’s timing, such as the container being released when we were back in Ouaga and were able to deal with it; and my flight being changed to a day later – giving me time to help empty the container.
– Having only a mild dose of malaria, and being able to keep working when needed.
– Working with pastors who have a passion to preach the Gospel, and see their communities know Christ.

The list goes on….!!

Please continue to pray with us as we serve the Lord in Burkina Faso – thanks!

The first drill team, and more…

(Published 18th November 2013)

It’s time once again to update my blog, and try to remember what all has happened over the past 3 weeks, never-mind try to describe it…! It’s been a busy time – lots of long days, late nights, a couple of thousand kilometers on mediocre roads, hard work, unexpected difficulties…but also much rejoicing, thankfulness, fellowship, and an over-riding sense of God’s Sovereignty.
The work was based around 7 wells, and each was a little different – here’s a very brief story of each….

Kojonti
This was one of the villages that we had visited on the survey trip, and is where a young lady had died last year after falling into a hand-dug well. These wells are just shallow holes in the ground, a local source of water that the people have. This well to be used as another test for our drilling equipment whilst the maintenance team were still with us, and ensure that everything was working as expected. The first test for us was extracting the yellow truck from soft ground..! On the way into the village we safely negotiated the part of the road that we suspected might give us difficulty; however, it was the next section that caught us out! If I’d driven just 3ft further to the right all would have been ok….instead, we had to spend the next couple of hours unloading the back of the truck, digging a ramp for the wheel, and winching the truck out – all in a day’s work out here! Once at the village, we set up the equipment and started drilling, and soon the water started flowing! A great well was achieved, and we pray that it will be a blessing to the village.

Manbangeni
This is a Fulani village just beside Kojonti, and the church in Kojonti is seeking to witness to these people. The first hole that we drilled produced some water, but even with drilling down to 300ft it was not really sufficient for a well, so we moved to the second location which was just 100m away. Mark drilled the first 40ft and put in the casing then headed on to do some other work, leaving me to carry on the drilling…by the time we had drilled down to just 55ft I was soaked! We had hit a fracture in the rock and the water was flowing (mostly over me)! Another great well!
Whilst we were praying at the well before leaving the village, a Fulani lady came and asked us to pray for her sons, both of whom had problems with their eyes – for a Muslim to ask us to pray is very significant, and we trust that this is the start of the Lord working in her life, and that the local church will be a faithful witness in this village.
This village will also be remembered as the place that we were when Sam our cook received the devastating news that his wife had passed away. He had heard just the night before that she hadn’t been feeling well and had gone to a clinic in Ouaga, but didn’t hear anything more until he took a call telling him that she had died. What do you say at a time like that…? Thankfully, since we were still close to Fada we were able to get Issaka (our local worker) to take Sam back to Ouaga. Please remember Sam and his family as they come to terms with the tragic loss of his wife, and he considers whether to continue coming out on teams with us.

Kantchari
This town is 120km east of Fada, very close to the border with Niger We left Manbangeni a little later than planned (story of our lives out here) and so it was starting to get dark as we were travelling. Then my truck started playing up…I had a fair idea what the problem was, but with some of these roads is isn’t always advisable to be on them after dark, so my prayer was simple, “Lord, please keep this truck going until we get off the main road”… We drove into the town, found the church where we were to drill (only a couple of hundred yards off the main road), turned onto the dirt road, and my truck stopped – literally 10yards off the main road! A true answer to prayer! A quick check of the engine revealed that the problem was as expected…a blocked fuel filter –quickly sorted, and we rolled the truck up the church and got to our beds…an early night!
The next day we drilled down to 260ft and got a good enough water supply for a hand-pump. It was a long day, and pulling out the 26 drill rods in the dark with equipment that is well past its best was a bit stressful, but we got there in the end. The next day we finished up the well, gathered together all our stuff and hit the road back towards Fada, and on to Piela.

Piela
SIM have had a mission station in Piela since the 1950’s and are currently extending the medical centre there, requiring a new water source. Once again, we arrived in the dark, so we found our rooms in the SIM guesthouse, enjoyed dinner with the SIM missionaries based in Piela, and took advantage of an early night!
Drilling the next day went well….we should have known it was too good! By lunchtime we had drilled to 160ft, and lots of water was flowing from the hole….we reckon it was producing about 3000 gallons per hour (that’s a good flow!). However, when we tried to put the plastic liner pipes into the hole, they stopped at 120ft and wouldn’t go any further. So we pulled all the pipes back out again, put a 6” diameter drill bit on (we had drilled the hole with a 5” diameter bit), and started opening out the original hole. I think that it must have been at least 5 hours later that we finally got the drill pulled out of the ground…and they were stressful hours… A block of rock had fallen behind the drill bit at about 110ft causing it to jam; the drill rig engine kept stalling; the drill rig engine starter decided to give up, making it really difficult to get the engine going… We prayed individually; we prayed collectively; and finally the drill bit was free – it really was an answer to prayer! As one of the team prayed at that time, we needed God to touch the rock that was binding the drill bit and allow the bit to be freed, and in the same way we need God to deal with the things in our lives that bind us so that we can be free to serve Him…
The next day was Sunday, so we took a much needed rest! Monday morning saw us finish the well (taking us longer that hoped – nothing new there!), and start moving to the next site 50km to the north.

Bourgou
As seemed to be our tradition on this trip, we arrived at the village after dark. However, since we really wanted to get 3 wells drilled before the team left on Thursday we left some folks to set up our camp and start making dinner, whilst the rest of us got the equipment into place and started drilling. We drilled down to 80ft to ensure that we were into solid rock, got the casing pipes put in place, and switched off the machines…well, it was midnight! The following morning we drilled down to 150ft, and once again were blessed with a great flow of water. This village is the site of a lay-pastor training school, so we trust that the well will be a great help to the pupils as they come to learn how to more effectively minister in their local churches.

Yassogou
If we thought that working to midnight was bad, in the next village midnight came and went with us still working away! After arriving after nightfall (about 6pm at the moment), we set up the equipment and went straight to work – at just 60ft we had an amazing flow of water…Mark reckons that it is one of the biggest flows he has seen out here (and he has drilled a good number of wells in Burkina!). So, we took it on down to 80ft, tried not to flood the village, and kept working until we had the well lined and gravelled. Sometime before 2am we stopped, tried to scrape the worse of the dirt off ourselves, and got some much needed sleep.
It’s sometimes hard to imagine that these villagers are walking a couple of miles each day just to collect water, when just a few metres below their feet there is an abundant supply of clean water. As Mark put it, the water has always been there – we haven’t made it or put it there, we’ve only provided a means for the people to tap into it; similarly, God’s limitless supply of love, forgiveness, grace and mercy is available to us – as Christians we need to faithfully point people in the direction of it.

Ganta
This was the last village we were to drill at on this trip, and we were amazed that we had even made it to this point in the time available to us! We had drilled here last year, and had 2 dry holes, so I have to admit that it was with a degree of scepticism that I set up the drill rig just 20m away from one of last year’s holes -still, this was the surveyed spot, so we would try it first. We drilled down to 130ft that evening and looking at the dust coming out felt that the result would be another dry hole… The next morning I started drilling whilst Mark went for a drive round the area – to see any other wells, and also look for another suitable spot to drill. Little did I know that the words of Isaiah 41: 17&18, that I had read the night before, would come to life! – “When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst, I the LORD will answer them; I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the bare heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys. I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water”. As I drilled, a river of water was flowing away from the rig, forming a pool a short distance away – it was a beautiful sight! Somehow, this village had captured the hearts of the team – maybe because of the friendliness of the locals; maybe it was their generosity in the midst of their evident poverty; maybe the real need for a well (the locals were walking 4km to the next town to collect filthy water from a pond); maybe because we had been told that water could not be found in this place – for whatever reason, there was much prayer before the work, and much rejoicing when the water flowed!
That afternoon we said goodbye to the team and finished up the well. The locals came with their containers…hundreds of them!…and we kept pumping the beautiful clean water from the well! Friday morning saw us on the road, bringing the equipment back to Ouaga.

So that was the first drill team of the season. They were from North Carolina, and it was great working with them (even if we couldn’t understand each other half the time!)

The past week saw Mark and I head back to some of the villages to install hand pumps. They were a couple of long days – and very frustrating at times when the metal pipe wouldn’t screw together as its meant to (but hopefully we’ll get better with practise!). We’ve also been sorting out all the usual bits and pieces at the yard; getting things ready for the next drill team; waiting patiently for the new drill rig (it’s now in Ouaga) and the container (currently in Togo) – it never ends! This week we’ll head back to Manbangeni and Kantchari to install pumps, then attend the SIM Spiritual Life conference (I’m hoping for a few days rest); next week we’ll probably head back to Ganta, Yassogou & Bourgou to install/fix those pumps, then take the trucks to Banfora in preparation for the December team, and try to get a little bit of rest! The next team will have 3 folks from home (including 2 good friends of mine), and I’m really looking forward to that…I’m not quite sure that Stephen and James know just what they’re letting themselves in for, but we’ll try to go easy on them!

As always, thanks to everyone who is praying for the work here in Burkina. Please remember the local churches as they seek to evangelise in the villages, and that the water pumps would provide them with new opportunities to talk to people and tell them about Christ, the Living Water. Also please remember the team who will be arriving on 30th Nov – that they will have a good, and safe, time here, and would know God’s blessing on their lives. Finally, please remember Mark (and his family) and myself over the next few weeks – there’s lots of work to be done; a lot of miles to be travelled, and we need God to give us the strength to keep going, and the wisdom not to run ourselves into the ground!

The drilling commences…

(Published 22nd October 2013)

5 weeks into my time back in Burkina, and it’s hard to know where the time has gone…it’s flown! Things have generally gone well – of course, there’s been the odd hiccup or two, but that’s to be expected and you just have to roll with it! So, what have we been up to over the last 3 weeks….
The concrete floor in the hangar got finished! Over 100 tons of concrete mixed by hand (thankfully not mine!), and poured in time for the maintenance team coming out. The hangar has been a real blessing – you don’t realise the difference it makes until you stand out in the sun for a few minutes after being in the shade, and feel yourself starting to burn straight away!

Dean, Tim and Vijay arrived safely on the 5th Oct for the maintenance work, and have been busy ever since! They’ve done a fantastic job, and it is a blessing having them here to make sure that all the equipment is in good working order (well, until we start using it…)

Mark, Vijay and I headed on a 2 day survey trip to visit the first few wells that we hope to drill. These are out in the east of Burkina – 2 villages outside Fada; 1 village in Kantchari on the Niger border; a medical centre in Piela; and 3 villages north of Bogande. Most of these sites are close to villages where we drilled last season – one of the ones in Fada is where a young lady fell into a hand-dug well in the dark – we had taken her to hospital, but very sadly she died the next day. At the other village in Fada we had the opportunity to have lunch with the villagers. It was a typical village lunch – a big bowl of rice and sauce, and that’s it – no plates, bowls, forks, etc….just stick your hand in (the right hand…always the right hand!), grab some rice, squash it up a bit, and try to eat as much as possible without scattering it around yourself. This was a Fulani village (Fulani is the people group), and apparently they do not normally eat during the day nor with strangers, so we were very privileged.
Of the villages close to Bogande, one is where we had drilled last year with the Texans…at that time we didn’t strike water in either hole, so we’re praying that we will get a well this time.
It was a good trip – we saw what we needed to see; there were no access problems to any of the sites; all the geological surveys had been done; but most importantly it was good to get to spend more time with the villagers, which is something we don’t get time to do when we’re actually drilling.

Back in Ouaga we’ve drilled at a church site just over the road from our yard. Unfortunately we haven’t struck water, but it’s been good to test out the equipment whilst Dean is still here, and before taking it to Fada!

We’ve also been busy helping set up the new website – visit it athttp://www.friendsinaction.org.uk and sign up for Twitter updates(!); getting paperwork sorted for the importation of the new drill rig – should be arriving in Ghana on Thursday (24th Oct) – and the container; sorting finances; planning teams for 2014/2015….the list goes on!

Thankfully, we managed to get along to the World Cup qualifying match between Burkina and Algeria – there was a great atmosphere, and thankfully Burkina won! Now, they just have to repeat that when they play the return leg and we’re on our way to Brazil!
I’ve also been trying to play a football match each Saturday morning, as well do a bit of running – the heat just drains you, but I’m persevering (and lowering my expectations of how fast I can run!)

Tomorrow (Wed 23rd) we hope to drive the trucks out to Fada, and then drill a well at the first village. We’ll then return to Ouaga on Friday, say goodbye to Dean & Tim on Saturday (Vijay is staying for another 2 weeks), and say hello to the first drill team of the season. So, it’s going to be busy!

Today as we were working, and things weren’t going exactly to plan (do they ever?) the words of Proverbs 16:9 kept going through my mind – “The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps” – we make our plans the best we can, and commit them to God – but often, like today, they just don’t work out. I know that I continually need to remind myself that God is Sovereign and His ways are not the same as ours, and I need the grace to accept that some things won’t work out the way that I may think is best, and the faith to keep trusting God in all circumstances….
Sometimes we can see (or at least think we can see) why some things happen – for example, one of our trucks failed its Visite Technique (like the MOT) for something pretty obscure. We grouched about it a bit, especially when you see the state of many of the trucks on the roads here, but fixed it anyway and were about to send it for re-inspection. However, just before it went, we noticed that the wrong registration document had been submitted first time round, and so the incorrect registration number had been out on the VT form. If the truck had passed the first inspection, we would of had paperwork that we thought was good but actually had the wrong registration on it, potentially causing bigger headaches later on if stopped by the police….

As always, thanks to everyone who is praying for the work here – it is only in God’s strength that we keep going. Please remember us as we head out drilling – for safety as we travel and work; for the churches and pastors that we will be working with; and for the villagers who may be hearing the Gospel for the first time.

The story continues…

(Published 29th September 2013)

Less than 6 months after stepping onto the plane in Ouagadougou, here I am again….stepping off the plane into the mixture of heat, sounds and smells that are particular to Africa – and, for me, specific to Burkina Faso. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised that I’m here – everyone back home seemed to ‘know’ that I’d be back to Burkina to continue working with Friends in Action! By the end of my 6 months in Burkina, I was pretty certain that I would be applying to join the Friends in Action ‘Water of Life’ project, but it was still a big step for me to consider giving up the security of a good job and a comfortable life back in Northern Ireland and move out to Burkina on a more permanent basis. However, I believe that that is where God has been leading me, and through different circumstances He clearly showed me that applying to come out here was the right thing to do…and now here I am!
It was a busy summer back home – lots of meetings to show off the new Friends in Action drill rig; many opportunities to speak at churches, breakfasts, schools to tell about the work of FIA; settling into a new team in work; settling into a new church; too many jobs to try and sort around the house; too little time to get much running done in the Mournes, or climbing at Fairhead….but it was all good!
Now I’m back in Ouaga for almost 2 weeks and trying to get used to it all again….the heat, the bugs, the language, the roads, the food, the traffic, the shops, the random things you see every day that seem normal here (but would stand out a mile back home)…. It’s been a time of getting settled into my new home (a SIM apartment a couple of hundred yards from the SIM guesthouse, and very comfortable), getting reconnected with the other missionaries that I knew from my prior time in the country, heading back to the IBF church (International Bible Fellowship), and starting into the work.
We haven’t started drilling yet – our main tasks at the moment are getting the various bits of drilling equipment up and running (we’re almost there), and sorting out the floor of the hangar at our yard. This has taken a bit of time as we’ve had to dig out a lot of earth to allow a decent gravel foundation to be put in prior to concrete being poured – it’s jobs like this that make you appreciate how easy we have things back home! Still, we’re very fortunate to have a small tractor that we can use to dig out the earth, and a couple of trucks that can be used to roll down the gravel…. However, don’t start me about the wood that we’re using to make the forms for pouring the concrete….wood that bends itself into curves after you have cut it with a straight line is a pain to work with! Just one of the many things that you just have to smile at and work a way around – if you let it annoy you, you’ll never stick Burkina!

The incoming week will hopefully see most (if not all) of the concrete for the hangar floor poured, and all engines ticking over. Dean Block arrives in next Saturday night (5th Oct) with a couple of other lads for a 3 week maintenance team – will be great to catch up with them again. Over that time we’ll hopefully get out to some of the villages that we plan to drill at in November, as well as drill at least one well close to Ouaga to test the equipment.

So, that’s pretty much how things are at the moment…. Please pray that I’ll continue to settle into life here, and that we make good progress with getting things ready over the next couple of weeks – this is all the background stuff that has to be in place to allow us to focus on our main task…bringing safe clean water to those who need it most. Also, thanks to everyone who has supported me both in prayer and financially – it is very much appreciated!!

Drilling for water in Burkina Faso

A commentary on my time water well drilling in Burkina Faso with Friends in Action

2013 – 2014 Season