The recent drought hitting the Southwest caused the small town of Magdalena, New Mexico to completely run out of water. How did the town survive without water? What can we learn about our water consumption habits that can better prepare us droughts in the future? Magdalena, a village in Socorro County New Mexico has a small population of around 1,000 people. This month, the town ran out of water. Residents only had 24 hours of notice before the tap water was turned off.
Magdalena was under a “boil alert” because the supply of water coming into households was dangerously low. Some businesses had to shut their doors, health clinics could not properly function, and some residents had to leave the town entirely.
Then the town’s sole drinking water well went dry, leaving the town without any water.
Senior Field Correspondent for Fronteras, Monica Ortiz Uribe, went to Magdalena and got a chance to speak to the locals about the drought. She produced a piece for Fronteras called “New Mexico Town Offers Glimpse Of Life Without Water” and shares with us how the town has survived without water.
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