World News for Students of English

08-11-2021 07:00

The severe drought gripping the western US is drying up major water reservoirs like Lake Mendocino in California.

The tourist town is just feet away from the largest water reservoir on the planet, the Pacific Ocean; however, the town is running out of water. Meteorologists or weather men and women say that this has been one of the worst droughts in the last 100 years. Small businesses in the town are on the edge of closing down to recover. Some apartments and businesses don’t have enough water to flush the toilets, and they spend thousands of dollars to buy water from delivery trucks just to stay open. The town is turning to neighboring cities to buy water; however, those cities are stopping the sales because they’re running out, too.

Mendocino can’t keep up with the tourist demand, and water officials are seeking ways to help restaurants and hotels survive because local people also depend on them. Some suggest that building a desalination plant is the only solution, as the weather forecast is not promising to refill the reservoirs.

Difficult words: grip (to hold tightly), reservoir (a place where something’s is stored), desalination (the process of removing salt, especially from sea water).

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