Several Jackson County residents’ wells and springs have run dry recently, and there may be no hope for replenishing their water sources until the drought ends, officials say.

Jackson County Manager Ken Westmoreland said four residents have reported to the county that their wells or springs have run dry, but Westmoreland said there may be more that they haven’t reported.

Jackson, Swain, Haywood and Macon counties — along with the rest of the mountain region — are in a severe drought, according to the North Carolina Drought Management Advisory Council.

Westmoreland said in one case a spring went dry and the homeowner dug a 900-foot well and still didn’t find water.

The county is providing 250-gallon water tanks to some of the residents so at least they have some drinking water. But Westmoreland said the water isn’t tied into the home, and therefore can’t be used for showers and other necessities.

The fact that homes in the county are without water is a “situation that’s hard to fathom,” Westmoreland said. “It’s a major inconvenience.”

A possible solution to the problem is taking the homes off wells and tying them into water lines operated by the Tuckaseigee Water and Sewer Authority, Westmoreland said.

But extending the lines to individuals would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and could take a year, he said.

TWASA Executive Director Joe Cline said it would cost $425,000 to extend the waterlines to Hazel Hollow, where one well ran dry. And Cline said it would cost about the same to extend a water line to Dillard Road, where two homes are reported to be without water.

Cline said TWASA does not have the money to extend the lines, and said the money would have to come from individual homeowners paying for the lines. Cline added that there is no grant money available.

Jackson County Commission Chairman Brian McMahan agreed that extending the water lines may be cost prohibitive.

“I don’t want to give anyone false hope,” McMahan said. “Money is tight. We don’t have millions of dollars to drill new wells or extend lines.”

Some solutions may be securing grants and low-interest loans, McMahan said. Another solution may be forming special assessment districts in which those who would benefit from the water lines would be charged over a period of years, McMahan said.

The water shortage could get worse, Westmoeland said. “We’re hearing rumblings from all over the county that springs are running low,” Westmoreland said.

Task force formed

In response to the problem, Jackson County and entities within the county have decided to form a task force to explore what can be done about the water shortage.

McMahan said the task force will have representatives from Sylva, Dillsboro, Southwestern Community College, Western Carolina University, Forest Hills, Webster and TWASA.

McMahan said hopefully the group can meet by the end of the month and start developing solutions.

Some people may not have the money to dig their wells deeper, Jackson County Commissioner Tom Massie said. Massie said he feels for people who are running out of water, but pointed out they made the choice to live in a rural location far from public water lines.

A water shortage is a “new phenomenon” for Western North Carolina, Massie said, adding, “Water has been taken for granted” in North Carolina.

Meanwhile, John Tissue of Hazel Hollow was watching brown water pour from his well Friday, hoping the water will clear up so his family can use it to live on. Tissue said he spent $5,000 in two days installing a new pump and new pipes into the well. His well dried up three weeks ago, and he and his family had to stay with his in-laws for a week.

Now Tissue and his family are back at their own house living on a makeshift system with a large tank that pumps water into the house.

Even though the water he struck last week is brown, he said he is glad he found any water at all. He said his hope is that there is some way he can hook into the TWASA system.

To comment on this story email josh@smokymountainnews.com.