March 2026 Update

The Wheels Are Falling Off

We have all heard the idiom “the wheels falling off”, as a metaphor of a sudden demise. When our forman John Simasiku called on December 19 and said “the wheels are falling off” he was not metaphorically speaking, the “wheel” (or more accurately the right rear axle) parted company with the differential on the K6 Foundation Toyota Hilux.

A week earlier John had begun assembling materials to install 150 Barotse Strong Pumps and sandpoint wells across the southern edge of the Matebele and Mulonga Plains. Once complete John would begin a maintenance journey to assess, repair and re-stock parts of the 116 BSPs we installed in 2024-2025.

This look serious.

Brokedown. Across the Zambezi River and 100 miles from our workshop in Mongu. Things were looking grim until John contacted our miracle-working mechanic Peter Japan — Peter has resurrected the K6 Hilux on several occasions. A quick transfer of funds and Peter was on the way and by December 21 we were back in business. Thank you once again Peter Japan.

Peter Japan repairs the K6 Hilux.

John typically hires his brother Matoli and a couple of local village lads to help in these installations. During the two days while the truck was out of commission John and the team decided to carry the steel and materials to nearby villages to install their BSPs.

The crew prepares casing and sandpoints for nearby BSP installations while repairs are made.

The Malaria

During the first round of installations John found efficiency in storing a large cache of materials in a village. After installing a few BSPs and leaving a cache in Mukenge Village John returned to Mongu for a second load. A couple of days went by and I received a text from John — he has malaria! Malaria is not necessarily a fatal disease and several of my Zambian friends have contracted malaria several times. Regardless it is serious as the fevers, chills, headaches and nausea will lay a healthy person down for a while. John was out for about ten days.

While John returned to Mongu to repair the cutters, Matoli and the crew began hauling materials to nearby villages to save time when John returned. Matoli was walking between villages and a Toyota Corolla (without plates) skidded to a stop and four young men jumped out with clubs and a machete and attacked him. Nearby villagers heard Matoli’s cries for help and drove the assailants away, no doubt saving Matoli’s life. He suffered multiple blows and cuts to his head, arm and hand. He was taken to a local clinic for first aid. John immediately returned and took his brother to a hospital in Mongu.

While Matoli recovered John returned to the scene with local policemen. No suspects were found. The only plausible motive may be political violence during an election year. Some people view acts of public good as being politically driven. The election is in August 2026 and unless these guys are apprehended we will wait for new BSP installations on the southern edge until after the elections.

Matoli has made a full recovery. I never anticipated using Project funds for medical care.

The Maintenance Run

The Solution

New BSPs installed along the southern edge of the Plains.

In February John loaded up the K6 Hilux with parts and tools for a maintenance run of the 116 BSPs installed along the northern edge of the Plains during late 2024 and early 2025. We knew going in that this was going to be the real test: Can a village self-sustain a BSP for a year plus?

Visiting the first BSPs installed in October 2024 John was finding an answer, yes and no. He was finding that 30% of the pump handles were seeing excessive wear, to the point of imminent failure. The polymer bearings protecting the bracket from the pivot pin were going fine however the bearing on the handle failed thus the handle began to wear. We have not seen this in our Kalabo BSPs but they recieve far less use.

Note the excessive wear on the pivot hole in the handles.

We decided to suspend the maintenance run until we could find a solution. John returned to Lusaka with an idea to use ball bearings. He met with Exson, the Chief Machinist whose shop fabricated the BSPs. They agreed to try to press sealed bearings into the handle. After a prototype was made I sent new drawings to John and Exson using 50 mm flat bar rather than the original 40 mm.

Sealed bearings for both handle and punger pivots (left) and bearings pressed into new 50 mm handle prototype.

Prototype handle being tested on a BSP at Exson’s shop.

Once the prototype was tested on a BSP pump body we commissioned Exson to make a full compliment of 116 handles. This will be completed by late March when John returns to the northern edge and resumes the maintenance run. John is convinced that with the sealed bearings the only part that will need regular maintenance will be the leather seals. The importance of a village being able to sustain a pump with minimal maintenance cannot be overstated.

The new year has been a bit rough; breakdown, malaria, assault, worn handles. There is a long list of things that have gone wrong since the proof-of-concept in November 2019, but the list of things that have gone right is a bit longer! It never gets easy. As I’ve said before, if it was easy it would have already been done.

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