Dexter family awash in drought lessons

DEXTER – A young Dexter family won’t soon forget a spring day five months ago, when the mother of two small children turned her kitchen faucet on and nothing came out.

Dennis and Terry Magnant had joined the ranks of thousands of people statewide affected by the months-long drought.

Two weeks ago, with the help of friends and church members, the couple extended their water line 20 to 30 feet deeper into their 50-foot well. With the longer line and the autumn rains, the family has running water – something they won’t take for granted ever again.

When the family ran out of water in June, the Magnants believed something was wrong with their pump. They replaced it, only to learn the well had gone dry. “We had never had a problem with our water,” said Terry Magnant. “People were surprised that our well went dry. But that just goes to show you how dry this year was.”

Terry Magnant said many people in the community offered use of their homes for showers and to bathe the children or to fill water jugs. Daily, the young mother packed her two toddlers into a car, loaded 22 one-gallon jugs and several larger containers into the trunk, and drove two miles to the town’s water spigot to fill them up.

“You need water for just about everything,” said Magnant. “It took six gallons of water a day to flush the toilet; a washing machine takes a lot of water because it fills three times.”

To conserve on water, Magant found herself investing in paper plates and cups to cut down on the amount of dirty dishes. She washed the family’s clothes at a Laundromat and purchased all of their drinking water.

“It wasn’t as bad as it could have been,” Magnant said. “I couldn’t imagine going through the winter. I am really thankful to have it back. We feel very blessed.”

The young mother admitted it was a bit harder to go without water once the weather turned cooler. Magnant said she did not like taking her children, ages 2 and 4, out to bathe them.

When the family got its water back a few weeks ago, Magnant said her kids were so excited the first thing they wanted was a bath “in their own tub with their own bubbles.”

The family no longer uses paper plates and cups, and they aren’t dropping by friends and neighbors for daily baths and showers. But Magnant says she will continue to use some of the conservation tips provided by the Maine Emergency Management Agency.

Magnant said she will continue to conserve water. She still buys drinking water and plans to occasionally use the local Laundromat. But one thing Magnant won’t do is let her kitchen faucet run while she washes a dish at a time. And she won’t be filling the bathtub as much.

“Everyone has been really helpful, even people who didn’t know us,” Magnant said. “It was nice to see how many people were right there to help us. Having our water back is one thing I’m really grateful for, especially now that I’m pregnant. I can take a shower at my own house and just relax.”