America’s second fastest-growing city is struggling with major water problems as residents live in scorching heat every day.

During the pandemic, homebuyers flocked to Kyle, Texas, where an aquifer, an underground water source, is currently drying up, leaving more than 67,000 residents struggling for water.

Even before summer began, temperatures in the city, which is 20 minutes outside of Austin, reached nearly 100 degrees as nearby streams and waterholes dried up due to the ongoing drought.

Hays County, where the popular city is located, will most likely suffer from extreme drought at least a quarter of all years by 2040, according to ICE Sustainable Finance.

The situation has become so bad that last summer residents were banned from washing their cars at home and using local water for construction projects, while municipalities had to restrict the use of sprinklers and hoses.

Many (if not all) residents rely on hoses to moisten the foundations of their homes to prevent cracks and settlement caused by heat.

Stephanie McDonald, 62, who bought a home in Kyle in 2015, told the Wall Street Journal she often worries about the house’s foundation because of the water shortage.

During a city council meeting this spring, McDonald argued that there is not enough water for all the new homes that officials continue to build in Kyle.

Last year, homes and businesses in Kyle needed 4,382 more gallons of water per minute during peak usage times, compared to just 571 gallons in 2021, according to a city engineering report.

While the city’s water supplies are at an all-time low, utility costs are placing a major burden on the city and its residents.

From 2021 to 2022, the minimum water bill for households in Kyle increased by an average of 6.8 percent per year, according to city budget reports.

In April, the city acquired water rights from nearby San Marcos and draws water from the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer.

Mayor Travis Mitchell has continually addressed Kyle’s water issues and said the restrictions have already helped the city save money.

“Due to the rapid growth of our city, we are currently trying to expand our water inventory,” Mitchell told KXAN.

In addition to rapid growth and water shortages, the city was also plagued by heat so dangerous that residents could only leave their homes early or late in the day.

In addition to the high temperatures, Kyle also suffers from extreme humidity, which makes it difficult for his body to cool down.

Last year the heat in Austin reached a scorching 48 degrees, and this year it only dropped to 46 degrees.

In May of this year, rescue workers responded to 125 heat-related missions – more than twice as many as the previous year.

“I had people working in factories or in an Amazon warehouse, taking precautions and going to work with a big jug of water, and they still suffered kidney failure,” said John Tuners, medical director of four emergency and urgent care facilities in the area, recalled.

Many people suffered kidney failure due to extreme dehydration, while others developed rhabdomyolysis, a near-fatal condition that causes the breakdown of muscle tissue.

A new pipeline is currently being built in the city and is scheduled for completion around February 2025.

“Our current water supply is about 5.7 million gallons per day. (The pipeline) will add another 1.7 million,” Mike Murphy, Kyle’s director of water supplies, told the outlet.

Murphy estimated that the $250 million pipeline will supply the city with 2 million gallons of water by 2027.

The new pipeline is expected to supply water not only to Kyle, but also to San Marcos and Buda for at least 50 years.

Robert Mace, executive director of the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University, believes the water will run out much sooner.

Mace predicted that the pipeline would likely stop supplying water in 10 to 20 years, as other suburbs of San Antonio and Austin would soon benefit from the water supply.

According to Mitchell, the city is also exploring the possibility of recycling wastewater for commercial and agricultural purposes, while at the same time requiring that new buildings have green spaces designed to use very little water.

“We cannot choose between moderate or slow growth,” Mitchell told the Wall Street Journal.

Under Texas law, municipalities are limited in their ability to restrict construction projects, Mitchell said.

The mayor added that this is why the city is attracting developers before negotiating with them about sustainability in Kyle.

Some local residents have taken matters into their own hands. Bob Gregory has already started desalinating brackish water, removing salts and minerals, to sell it next year.

“It’s a matter of time before the price of water gets high enough to cover the price I pay for desalination,” said Gregory, owner of Texas Disposal Systems.

A new 28,000 square meter Amazon sorting center was recently opened in Kyle, and a huge Tesla factory is also nearby.

An Amazon spokesperson said the average indoor temperature at the new facility is 74 degrees and that no employee has experienced heat-related illness between 2023 and 2024.

A Sprouts Farmers Market and numerous dollar stores are slated to open in Kyle, and XCharge Technologies, an electric vehicle charging company, recently opened a showcase workshop there.

While the city’s revenue has quadrupled to $65 million due to increased population and businesses, some people are frustrated by the large population.

The treacherous heat has particularly affected local construction crews building new homes.

“I’ve seen people completely faint. I’ve fainted myself,” said Alex Stockton, who oversees construction crews in Kyle.

His crew is allowed a 30-minute break during their shift, but Stockton keeps a close eye on his workers and allows them to sit down when they need to.

“Many companies don’t like this style.”

“They come by and say, ‘Why is he sitting there?’ I say, ‘I don’t know, so he doesn’t die?'” Stockton said.

Bill Curran, who moved into a newly built home in Kyle in 2022, fled to Austin after experiencing the heat and crowds in the city.

Curran said his commute had increased from 45 minutes to an hour and he could only train early in the morning for obvious safety reasons.