Farmersville, other CA cities to get portion of $9.7M in drought aid

FARMERSVILLE, Calif. (KFSN) -- A member of the United States Cabinet was in Farmersville on Friday to announce help for people suffering from this year's drought. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack spoke with people whose wells have run completely dry and announced funding to get them a more reliable water connection.

Farmersville resident Carlen Overby tells Vilsack the stress she and her husband endure without water in her well. Now she's relying on water from her neighbor, saving and storing it, to help flush toilets and wash dishes.

"Scary. Very, very inconvenient. You just worry about it all the time. It dominates your life," said Overby.

Vilsack spent Friday morning in the South Valley, learning firsthand the effects of the drought. He also announced $9.7 million for drought-stricken communities in California.

"That's going to help provide over time communities to be able to provide stable and secure water resources to folks like Bob and Carlen. This is going to help out about 73,000 folks," said Vilsack.

The Central Valley is receiving a large chunk of the money, with some going to Orange Cove, Terra Bella Irrigation District and others. Farmersville is getting half a million dollars to help hook up people on a county island in Farmersville to the city's water system.

"It's the closest I've ever been to someone from the Cabinet, and it's just really exciting; it brings of course the attention to Farmersville," said Vice Mayor of Farmersville Greg Gomez.

The USDA money was transferred by Vilsack into this grant program. Another $5 million is heading to other parts of the country. Vilsack blamed Congress' failure to pass legislation to create better water storage.

"It will take other efforts to create storage facilities and things of that nature which over time can address the issue of water quantity," said Vilsack. "Right now we're focused on providing immediate help to people."

The city of Farmersville says the USDA money plus another $500,000 from the State Water Board will help them connect this community to the city's water system so they don't have to rely on their wells. That project, though, could take a year.