HALUVHIMBI – Like big trees which grow from small seeds, a young man has become an instant hero because his sweat has turned into water for his fellow villagers.

Enos Sambo (27) could not afford to hire someone to drill for a borehole, but he was thirsty and eager to assist his community, which always runs short of water. Some thought he was day-dreaming when he said he was going to dig into the ground with his bare hands until he got water in his yard. He dug the ground for two months, on a daily basis, until he got water – the most precious thing his community was longing for.

He owes his success to just his wooden ladder, pick, shovel and spade. Today, he is a hero amongst his villagers of Haluvhimbi, outside Thohoyandou, because they regard him as a saviour who brought life to the village. Villagers use his water for their daily chores, including drinking and cooking.

“Though the water is not purified, I am happy because I have fulfilled my goal of bringing life to my rural village. Some villagers, including myself, have now established vegetable gardens and they are generating an income for their families because now there is water in the village. I think this is the time to make everything possi-ble rather than relaxing and waiting for the government to spoonfeed us.”

When Mirror asked him about the depth of his well in metres, Sambo said: “I can’t talk about the metres because I am not well-educated. What I know is that the hole I dug was very deep becauseI had to extend my wooden ladder on a daily basis. But it was tough. I worked long and awkward hours to make sure that I get water at the end of the day.”

Sambo said he nearly once gave up because he kept on digging down without finding any water.

“During my second month of hard labour, I noticed that the deep ground was wet and I again gathered some courage to go down further. When moisture started to seep through, I knew my dream was about to come true. There was a small seepage and water started coming out slowly. The next morning, the whole well was filled with water.”

Sambo said he then went to the mountain to cut strong wooden poles to cover the well so that children and animals would not fall into the water. “I also took old bicycle rims and unused flour bags to cover the well. I took an old wheelbarrow frame and tied it with wires on top of the well. I then tied a strong rope with a container on the frame to draw water with. It needs someone who is physically fit to draw the water. Life could be easier if I can get someone who can finance me with money for buying pipes and taps so that I can take the water run out more easily.”

Enos said he is impressed by the way his community treats him. “They love me because they know I care for them and I still have many surprises in the pipeline to assist my community.”