Paup, who until a few days earlier had never been to Arizona, was exhilarated to have finally arrived at the house on East Hopi Drive — a blue two-bedroom trailer on two acres of land — but also exhausted.
The move from Fallentimber, Pa., where the family lived for 15 years, required a cross-country trip in the semi-truck that Lori’s husband, Craig, drove for work, and now a long list of chores awaited.
“The same color.” Running her hand under the stream, she found what appeared to be small grains of sand.
A small woman with a tight smile and a bright orange streak in her hair, Lori was immediately unnerved by the sight.
Like all homes in the valley, where there are no reservoirs or rivers, the Paups’ house drew its water from a private well drilled into the underlying aquifer.
According to the real estate listing, the well reached a depth of more than 300 feet.
Lori, who is 51 and a mother of five, reminded herself of this when, a few moments later, the sand appeared to clear and the water again looked normal.
Busy with other projects, she scribbled a note to call the previous owners, figuring there was dirt clogged in the kitchen pipes.
A few days later, Lori and her daughter Amy were doing laundry when the washing machine stopped filling with water.
Craig, who had serviced his own diesel truck for some 20 years, inspected both machines but couldn’t find anything wrong with either.