Two years ago, Darrell Hocutt was a successful pipeline company operations director and had just received a patent on equipment that makes moving heavy, bulky pipeline sections or pieces of pipeline equipment easier and faster. This year, he sidelined two successful businesses and went to Kenya to figure out how to use his pipeline and drilling expertise to drill deep water wells and change the face of Africa.
"I traveled extensively when I was working for pipeline and drilling companies. I saw firsthand some of the difficulties of day-to-day living in other parts of the world," Hocutt said. His interest in northern Kenya and the Ethopia, where he hopes to first begin his new project, came after an impromptu visit to a friend and missionary working in the region. "My daughter and I were on a trip to see Israel and Greece and we decided to go see him... and I could not just go back to my life after that," Hocutt said.
Clean water is a scarce and nearly priceless commodity in much of Africa, and Hocutt says that the "wells" dug for communities are often too shallow to provide enough volume and reliability to do much more than get a bucket or two of water to a family each day. Without clean, readily available water, problems like diarrhea, parasites, cholera, and dysentery are daily realities and killers. A baby in sub-Saharan Africa is 520 times more likely to die of diarrhea than one born in Europe, for instance. 1
"We know that water changes everything for a community... it improves education, it improves health and reduces medical costs, and, if the well volume is adequate and its reliable, it allows for irrigation of land and therefore improves a community's ability to grow food," Hocutt said.
After his first visit to Africa, Hocutt launched Immediate Needs, an organization dedicated to taking action and making a difference as quickly as possible. He and his team are actively pursuing partnerships with local organizations to help get aid to the people who need it most and are also working closely with Kenyan officials both domestically and in Kenya to open doors, clear red tape and begin the active work Hocutt sees as vital to Africa's future.
A committed Christian, Hocutt feels led to do this work and is trusting that others will see the need, commit funds and time, and help him make his vision of a greener, safer, more sustainable Africa a reality. He will power the wells with solar panels when possible to eliminate hand pumping and maintain a sustainable approach.
He plans to use his knowledge of field operations for drilling companies to reduce the average cost of a bored well from between $35,000 and $50,000 to between $5,000 and $15,000 each... a savings that puts wells within reach for many more communities. He hopes to raise funds to cover the costs and then donate the services. Immediate Needs will operate as a 501c-3 organization dedicated to humanitarian service.
1 - http://uk.amref.org/what-we-do/fighting-disease-/waterborne-diseases-/
"I traveled extensively when I was working for pipeline and drilling companies. I saw firsthand some of the difficulties of day-to-day living in other parts of the world," Hocutt said. His interest in northern Kenya and the Ethopia, where he hopes to first begin his new project, came after an impromptu visit to a friend and missionary working in the region. "My daughter and I were on a trip to see Israel and Greece and we decided to go see him... and I could not just go back to my life after that," Hocutt said.
Clean water is a scarce and nearly priceless commodity in much of Africa, and Hocutt says that the "wells" dug for communities are often too shallow to provide enough volume and reliability to do much more than get a bucket or two of water to a family each day. Without clean, readily available water, problems like diarrhea, parasites, cholera, and dysentery are daily realities and killers. A baby in sub-Saharan Africa is 520 times more likely to die of diarrhea than one born in Europe, for instance. 1
"We know that water changes everything for a community... it improves education, it improves health and reduces medical costs, and, if the well volume is adequate and its reliable, it allows for irrigation of land and therefore improves a community's ability to grow food," Hocutt said.
After his first visit to Africa, Hocutt launched Immediate Needs, an organization dedicated to taking action and making a difference as quickly as possible. He and his team are actively pursuing partnerships with local organizations to help get aid to the people who need it most and are also working closely with Kenyan officials both domestically and in Kenya to open doors, clear red tape and begin the active work Hocutt sees as vital to Africa's future.
A committed Christian, Hocutt feels led to do this work and is trusting that others will see the need, commit funds and time, and help him make his vision of a greener, safer, more sustainable Africa a reality. He will power the wells with solar panels when possible to eliminate hand pumping and maintain a sustainable approach.
He plans to use his knowledge of field operations for drilling companies to reduce the average cost of a bored well from between $35,000 and $50,000 to between $5,000 and $15,000 each... a savings that puts wells within reach for many more communities. He hopes to raise funds to cover the costs and then donate the services. Immediate Needs will operate as a 501c-3 organization dedicated to humanitarian service.
1 - http://uk.amref.org/what-we-do/fighting-disease-/waterborne-diseases-/