Drought Gets Real: 17 Calif. Communities Set to Go Dry

Three Bay Area communities, including two towns, on the list.

The drought means more than conservation for some places in California.

It may also mean no water, sooner rather than later.

Water officials warn than 17 communities in the state are set to run dry in as little as three months, according to the state Department of Public Health.

Supplies in "small" and "rural" towns and water districts are running dangerously low, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, which notes the communities rely on rivers, wells and reservoirs -- with not a lot in the way of long-term reserves.

In the great Bay Area, the towns are:

Sonoma County: Cloverdale, Healdsburg;

Santa Cruz County: Lompico Water District;

Mendocino County:
Willits, Redwood Valley Community Water District, Brooktrail Township Community Services District.

In the Sierra:

Nevada County: Washington Ridge Conservation Camp;

Placer County: Ophir Gardens.

And south of Yosemite National Park and further south:

Amador County: Jackson Valley Irrigation District;

Mariposa County: Whispering Pines Apartments;

Madera County: Bass Lake Water Company;

Fresno County: Shaver Lake Heights Mutual Water Company; Sierra Cedars Community Services District;

Kern County: Boulder Canyon Water Association, Cypress Canyon Water Systems, Lake of the Woods Mutual Water Company, Camp Condor.

The state is mired in a dry spell that some forecasters and researchers say is the most-parched since 1580.

The state Department of Public Health is examining ways to help the places that may run dry, with digging wells or with hauling water in.

Copyright FREEL - NBC Local Media
Contact Us