Interesting to Know

Moi International Airport, Mombasa – Sinkholes or What!
Moi International Airport, Mombasa – Sinkholes or What!

The case of Mombasa airport was baffling – a JICA geological expert on the Dongo Kundu road construction site noticed what looked like sinkholes on the slopes rising up the airport hill brow. Staff at the airport had also found holes in the grassy berm along the runway and even filled some with rubble. They became worried because the holes…

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Equatorial Nuts – the Macadamia people
Equatorial Nuts – the Macadamia people

You have probably enjoyed the creamy macadamia nuts either purchased from a department store or provided as a snack on one of our Kenyan airlines. Those nuts need water to produce and process. Equatorial nuts had drilled 3 dry boreholes at their main farm and were desperate for water when they approached our team leader for a solution. Following thorough…

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Blast vibration velocity modelling
Blast vibration velocity modelling

With the construction of the Kenyan Standard Gauge Railway through residential neighbourhoods, it was only a matter of time before issues identified in the ESIA would surface. Some of the crushed aggregate quarries and cut-and-fill sections were located in residential areas; furthermore, the cut-and-fill areas on the track required vibration compaction. Buildings started developing cracks and people complained of human…

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Water on the hill – Case of RIAT borehole
Water on the hill – Case of RIAT borehole

The Ramogi Institute of Advanced Technology is a premier college situated on the hills overlooking Kisumu City, Kenya. The college’s expansion was curtailed for a long time by inadequate water supply. The director at Georama was called in to deliver a successful borehole for the institution. To put the difficulty of the task into perspective, the college stands at 1384m…

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East African Growers – Artesian borehole shock
East African Growers – Artesian borehole shock

Daisa Farm at Timau, Kenya operated by East African Growers, a horticultural enterprise had one borehole that was sorely insufficient to meet their demand. Following surveys on the sizable land, it became clear that no aquifer would be struck that would be worth the effort.  We advised the proprietor that his neighbour’s farm had a high chance for a successful…

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Remote water location
Remote water location

 We occasionally get requests from supervising geologists, drillers or clients on active drill sites to assist in locating a new site because a site has turned out dry, and would we locate another before the rig demobilises? In such cases, we request for a snapshot of the previous survey data, GPS location of current drill site and extent of area…

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East Africa’s deepest hand-dug well?
East Africa’s deepest hand-dug well?

What’s the record for the deepest hand dug well you’ve heard of or seen? 20 feet? 50? 150? Digging wells by hand is a dangerous job, especially in loose material. It is less dangerous when the well is dug in consolidated material or rock. The typical hand dug well in East Africa is usually 25 to 45 feet deep. Occasionally…

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