Water Shortage Quandry

The time of the month has come again. The townsfolk could always rely on Jerry Tyler to deliver 20,000 gallons of water to the town of Kali like clockwork every month.

The timing is perfect this month. That is because, in relation to time, there is only 1 hour of water left in the water tank reservoir. Everybody is anxiously waiting for Jerry to arrive.

What happens next is disturbing. A news report indicates that there is a 20 vehicle pile up on the highway, about 150 miles outside of town. It is the only artery into Kali. The traffic has been halted probably for several hours. Suddenly, the townspeople are in a panic because if this 1 hour of supply runs out, they are in a desperate situation to bathe, shower, cook, and irrigate crops.

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One hour passes by. The news channel reports that the pile up on the highway won’t be cleaned up for another 3 hours. The mayor of Kali gasps. He realizes that, because of this fact, the tanker truck won’t arrive for another 6 hours. He immediately calls a town hall meeting. He wants to discuss with the town population what to do without water for 6 hours.

The meeting is called to order. Each of the 1000 people indicate that they have 1 gallon of water in containers in their fridges. The mayor is gratified because there are technically 1000 gallons of water available for the people of Kali to use. It is agreed by everyone present that the water will be used only for drinking and cooking purposes for approximately the next 6 hours.

Three hours later, the townspeople are excited about the tanker truck arriving to fill the reservoir with clean and fresh water. Their excitement is suddenly tempered. The latest news report indicates that something tragic has happened. The news anchor says that the tanker truck has veered off the road to avoid hitting the car in front of it. The truck has crashed and has exploded into a ball of fire.

The town inhabitants are startled. This time, the panic has multiplied tenfold. They realize that if they are to wait for another tanker truck to bring water to the reservoir, it will not be for another 30 days. 

Another town hall meeting is called to order. Mayor Smith indicates that the town is in a very serious quandary. The situation is desperate. Then, the richest resident, Bill Springer, stands up. He claims that he can have the reservoir filled up within the hour. The townspeople stand up cheer. Mr. Springer points out that there is a fee attached to his generosity.

In order to get access to the water, he demands a $ 50,000 access fee. The townspeople are outraged. Despite his wealth, he shows his level of greed by literally holding the town ransom.  Mayor Smith clenches his fist and bangs it on the table in front of him. He demands that Bill Singer supply the town with water with no strings attached.

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Then, Mayor smith receives a fortuitous phone call at that moment. The call display indicates that it is a top-level agent from the Environmental Protection Agency. The agent tells the mayor that he is aware of the town’s desperate situation. He tells the mayor that a plane, with a month supply of water, will fly in and replenish the water tank reservoir with a month supply of water at 9:00 a.m. in the morning. 

The mayor puts down the phone. He delivers the good news to all of those gathered at the town hall meeting. But there is a matter to resolve. Bill Singer, the richest resident of the town, is stared at by all the townspeople. They are very upset with him, to say the least. They each look at him with an evil eye. His face turns red. He doesn’t say another word. He puts his head down and scurries for the exit. Mayor Smith adjourns the meeting.

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Bill Singer knows he is a marked man. There is no way he can still live in this town after he tried to literally steal money from all the residents. The people of the town of Kali have singled him out to be a traitor. They no longer wish to have him live amongst them. Bill Singer realizes what the town people are thinking. So, the next day, he makes plans to move out of the town of Kali. He puts a “For Sale” sign on his lawn.  He knows that he has gotten away with bribery before. But this time the strategy has backfired.

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Mayor Smith is puzzled about something. He likes the fact that the EPA has assisted the town with this noble effort. But what is puzzling him, is that he is unsure if they will rescue the town in this way again. He is in his luxurious office. He gets the contact phone number of the agent that phoned him about a day or so ago. He dials the agent’s number and enquires about this matter. The agent reassures Mayor that it is in the EPA charter that towns that are in a crisis of this nature will always be assisted by the EPA in this way.

Mayor Smith accepts this reassurance. That same day, he calls another town hall meeting. After the townsfolk are gathered, he informs them of the conversation he had with the EPA agent. He tells them of the EPA’s obligation, that is embedded in their charter, that citizens of the nation shall never be without clean drinking water in their jurisdiction in times of crisis. The townspeople couldn’t be happier. Water, which is essential to the survival of the human race, will never be denied to them again.

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There is a dark side to all this, though. Jerry, who delivered the water to the town water tank reservoir every month, will be laid to rest today. The Town of Kali has designated a special day for him. Mayor Smith has declared August 15 as Jerry Tyler Day from this day forward.  All the residents were happy with this gesture by the mayor. The residents of Kali will forever remember this bitter-sweet day for all-time. Meanwhile, driving away in the distance, is a moving van. Everybody knows that the contents inside the van belong to Bill Singer. It was a good way for the day to end.