GALLERY: Man lives in abandoned water pipe in La Rochelle
Kevin Esterhuizen, who grew up in Ennerdale, came to La Rochelle with a dream of owning a mansion and getting a stable job.
A PIECE of an old water pipe which has been lying in the open for several years has been turned into a home.
Kevin Esterhuizen, who grew up in Ennerdale, came to La Rochelle with a dream of owning a mansion and getting a stable job.
Yet, today, all he has is a blanket and the water pipe as a house, in which he has been staying for the past four years.
The 36-year-old said growing up he never thought he will eat and wake up in a water pipe.
He said moving away from his home was one of the biggest mistakes he has made because what he desired didn’t materialise.
According to him, he was promised a job which was going to better his life, but he reckons he was played.
Not knowing anyone in La Rochelle, he decided to build himself a shelter, but it was destroyed by heavy winds.
“I then decided to use the water pipe which was right next to the shelter I had built.
“Now it is my permanent home, but I want to move out to a better place where it’s safe because it is not safe staying here,” said Kevin.
Still big dreams
He has no wife or children, but hopes in the next coming years he will be calling himself a father and husband.
He didn’t want to divulge much about his family when speaking to the COURIER.
He told the COURIER he does peace jobs and recycles to put food on the table in his pipe house.
“Giving up on my life isn’t what I intend on doing. I believe one day I will get what I always desired, which is to work and get a house.
“People may think because I’m sleeping in a pipe I don’t have a brain, but that isn’t the case. I’m driven and want to achieve big things.
“I don’t have any qualifications, but I can do handyman jobs,” he said.
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