Dublin resident Justin Park says he’s thankful and humbled by the community support after asking for help when his family’s well ran dry last Monday night.
Park was bringing water to the chickens and ducks in the barn when the hose went dry on Tuesday. He yelled to his daughter to turn the water back on, but a minute later his wife came out to say the faucets in the house weren’t working. “I could see the bottom of my dug well. My heart just sank,” Park said.
Park moved to Dublin in 2014 while he was stationed with the Marine Corps and bought a house the same year. “Water has never been a problem,” he said, but this year’s drought, paired with the constant water demand by Park, his wife, two of their kids and their pets took a toll on the supply.
Since it’s a dug well, it’s likely to dry up again even if they pour more water in, Park said, and it’s unlikely to fully recharge before the ground frosts. They quickly determined that a new, drilled well would be the only way to guarantee a sufficient water supply, with help from their neighbor Chris Parker, who, conveniently, is a well consultant and came right over.
“I don’t like asking people for help, especially strangers,” Park said, but the unexpected $9,000 charge for drilling a new well is beyond what he and his wife can swing with their incomes, he said in his entry on the gofundme page he set up. “But the outpouring of support is blowing my socks off,” he said. The fundraiser had raised almost $6,000 by press time.
In the meantime, the family is hauling creek water for the livestock and drinking bottled water, carefully monitoring the well level to avoid losing well pump prime. “The kids have learned what a navy shower is,” Park said, just like he used to take while serving on a ship in the military. He recently completed a rainwater collection system for the barn animals, according to an update on the fundraiser page.
Other households that might be feeling the drought in their water supply should stay aware, Park said. “Even though we had some good rain, be conscious… [when] it comes to water use,” he said, limiting and spacing out usage if well levels are running low.