Conclusion of 52 Pumps in 52 Weeks – Senegal – Project 20 – Saare Dagua, Community Well

This project has been completed under the direction of Peace Corps Volunteers Garrison Harward and C.J. Pederson. To read about the beginning of the project, CLICK HERE.

Garrison reports:

This install had the same slight problem as #19 with our experimental turn block system but aside from that everything went very smoothly. We made the cap and told the village that by the time we came back everything needed to be cleaned out of the bottom of the well. Occasionally buckets or sticks will fall down and these can get tangled with the rope so they must be removed before the pump can be mounted.

Anyway, when we got back this wasn’t done yet, so we told the village we couldn’t do the pump. They immediately sprang into action rigging up a harness and sending a kid down to clean out everything. Don’t worry he was fine. Just like I said everything went smoothly.

With the well cleaned out, we mounted the pump and installed the pipe and turn block. Then it was time to turn the wheel, the moment of truth. This is always a little bit nerve wracking, even after so many installs and more so now after our last experiment failure. This time though it worked perfectly!

The kids all crowded around and immediately started drinking the water and showering underneath the spout. It’s always fun to see them play in the water that’s normally such a rare commodity, which is strenuous to pull up and thus never wasted on games. Of course, games are just the beginning of the benefits here as the whole village is thankful for the ease with which they can now pull water. Surely the cows are less thirsty too!