The arduous job of digging wells during the hot season.
(Baonghean.vn) - During these hot days, well diggers in the province are overwhelmed with work. It's hard work, difficult, and involves many risks, but this profession, working underground, provides them with additional income.
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| Nowadays, although tap water and drilled wells are available, open wells remain an important source of clean water; therefore, the well-digging profession is still maintained. However, the number of people practicing this profession is not as large as before; each commune usually has a few groups of well diggers working year-round or seasonally. Photo: Huy Thu |
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Well diggers in Thanh Chuong, Do Luong, Anh Son districts, etc., usually work in teams of 3-4 people, including 2 main diggers and 1-2 assistants. During this heatwave, well diggers in the province are busy, digging new wells and cleaning out old ones. Photo: Huy Thu |
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| Before digging a well, the team of workers must carefully study the terrain and geology to choose the appropriate digging method. The tools used in well digging in the past mainly consisted of hoes, shovels, crowbars, buckets, pulleys, etc. Nowadays, well diggers have a less strenuous job thanks to the addition of earth drills, winches, and electric ventilation fans… Photo: Huy Thu |
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Mr. Nguyen Van Dai (45 years old), from Thanh Khe commune (Thanh Chuong district), shared: "This summer has been extremely hot, and many people in various places are facing water shortages. The demand for well digging has increased; as soon as we finish one well, someone calls to dig another. Since the beginning of March, my well-digging team of four has dug 16 wells, both old and new, with continuous work." (Photo: Huy Thu) |
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| Well diggers working at the bottom of wells face many dangers such as landslides, well collapses, and falling tools. Digging wells in hilly areas is difficult but relatively safe, without the risk of landslides. Digging wells in plains or along rivers with soft soil is easier but much more dangerous. Photo: Huy Thu |
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| According to professionals, the speed of digging depends on the area, soil type, size, and depth of the well. The harder the soil and the smaller the well, the more difficult it is to dig. In the plains with soft soil, a team of four can dig 4-5 meters deep per day. Conversely, in mountainous areas with hard soil, full of gravel and rocks, digging is difficult; even with maximum effort, they can only dig 1-2 meters per day, and some wells can only be dug a little over half a meter. Photo: Huy Thu |
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| This summer, frequent power outages have also caused difficulties for well diggers. On days when the power goes out, they have to stop working because the drilling equipment, winches, etc., cannot operate. It's very frustrating when they're working in a well and the power suddenly goes out. (Photo: Huy Thư) |
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| If it rains or a strong spring gushes out while digging a well, the worker often has to struggle with muddy, soggy soil, sometimes digging and scooping water at the same time, which is quite laborious. Photo: Huy Thu |
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| For old wells that need further excavation, after pumping out the water, the workers must assess the safety of the well and check for toxic gases at the bottom. This is to prevent suffocation from toxic gases or subsidence around the well, which could cause the well to collapse, as has happened in some places. Photo: Huy Thu |
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The wages for well digging depend on the size, depth, and difficulty of the well. For wells with a diameter of 1.2m dug in the plains, the current wage is...600,000 - 800,000VND/meter deep. In hilly, mountainous areas where digging is difficult, the labor cost is around 1 million VND/meter deep. For re-digging existing wells, the price ranges from 1.5 to 2.5 million VND/meter. With the hot weather and continuous work, well diggers also earn extra income. Photo: Huy Thu |
| Clip: Huy Thu |
