The state has assigned an engineering company to take control of, and improve, the water system in the small Tulare County town of Teviston. Teviston, a rural community of about 460 people, has been hard hit by water problems for years. The town well broke down in the drought of 2021, leaving families without water and many without any way to cool themselves in soaring summer temperatures. Its water is also contaminated by 1,2,3, TCP, a dangerous carcinogen.  The state Water Resources Control Board gained the authority to appoint administrators to water systems in 2018. Appointed administrators take over struggling systems that can’t deal with issues ranging from water quality to technical and managerial challenges.