A Reservoir Left Dry, A Dream Rekindled: Robert Simpson's Wake-Up Call for the American West

DEWEY, AZ, UNITED STATES, June 17, 2025 /EINPresswire.com/ -- California wildfires have become a yearly tragedy but the collapse of Los Angeles’ water infrastructure during these events is a man-made crisis, not a natural one. As fires tore through neighborhoods, firefighters encountered an unimaginable obstacle: Empty Hydrants and No Water to Fight the Flames.

One of the key reasons the hydrants failed is that California’s state-run water monopolies prioritized revenue over public safety. The Santa Ynez Reservoir was originally constructed as an emergency water reserve, yet over time, the state shifted its focus to conservation. An empty reservoir loses no water to evaporation but it also does not protect a fire. And since no revenue is earned from evaporated water, the choice to leave it dry became financially convenient.

This tradeoff highlights a deeper issue: accountability. If a private company had been responsible for the water supply, legal action, and public scrutiny would likely have followed such a failure. But under government control, responsibility becomes blurred. No clear individual or agency is held to account, making it difficult to correct systemic problems or demand real change.

Simpson uses this failure as a springboard into a wider investigation, one that links crumbling water systems, housing shortages, and government overreach into a sobering but clear-eyed narrative.

Robert Simpson’s book is dedicated to the generations of families, legal citizens, and lawful immigrants who helped shape the rich and diverse culture that defines the United States today. Their hard work and shared values built the foundation of our nation. As we look to the future, we must recognize that preserving true freedom requires educating our youth and welcoming new Americans in a system that genuinely teaches how a liberty-based government works. Only through this understanding can we sustain a free and thriving republic for generations to come.

What makes the book powerful is Simpson’s technical expertise and lived experience. From framing houses as a young man to managing complex developments across the western U.S., Simpson has seen how policy decisions translate into real-life hardship. And he doesn’t shy away from tough truths: California’s highly centralized, state-run water system rewards control not service. Agencies like the LADWP and MWD operate without meaningful oversight, making billion-dollar decisions that impact millions with no clear accountability when things go wrong.

But Simpson isn’t just pointing fingers. His book is rich with solutions: from decentralized water recycling and desert-optimized infrastructure to aligning federal land policy with modern needs. He draws inspiration from the past, especially geologist and Civil War veteran John Wesley Powell, who famously warned against separating water from land in the arid West, a warning that, 150 years later, is proving painfully prescient.
The book doesn’t read like a policy brief. It’s an urgent, personal, and often surprising book filled with historical context, maps, case studies, and candid reflections on the mistakes of the past.

Whether you’re a homeowner, policymaker, builder, or someone stuck renting in an overpriced market, Simpson’s voice is one you haven’t heard before but need to. Because the next time the hydrants fail, we may not get a second chance. Place your ORDER NOW

About the Author

Robert Simpson is a development consultant with decades of hands-on experience across the Western U.S. Raised in Southern California, he worked his way through college in construction and went on to manage large-scale infrastructure projects. Blending technical expertise with historical insight, Simpson offers a fresh, solutions-driven voice in today’s housing and infrastructure debate. Why the Hydrants Failed is his debut book.

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Robert W. Simpson
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