Drought relief comes to east Porterville home

PORTERVILLE, Calif. (KFSN) -- Drought relief is in sight for people in east Porterville.

The first connection was made from the city's supply to a dry home on Friday.

At the home in east Porterville, it's been three years since the well went dry.

Three years without clean drinking water from the faucet for Tania Ramirez and her family, and she said it was a struggle.

"No one really realizes how important water is until you don't have it," she said.

Friday marked a change as clean water is flowing from the city's supply through a new connection.

"Today is a good day," Ramirez said.

Her home is the first of many and Bill Croyle with the State Department of Water Resources said at least two more connections will be made every week, with 500 by December in phase one and another 1,300 next year.

The project will cost $10 million.

"It was a tough road getting here," Croyle said. "We have a lot more work to do, a lot of homes to hook up, a lot of pipeline to lay and build."

He said the homes will be connected based on their distance from an existing pipeline.

The entire system is laid out and meters will have to be installed and accounts need to be set up with the city.

Croyle said the Ramirez family was chosen to be first because all the requirements were met.

"This one was ready to go," he explained.

"There are more families that are going to be going through this and feeling the same happiness," Ramirez said.

For those families, the struggle continues - but not for long.

"It's going to feel better," Ramirez said. "It's going to feel like before."