Initially, The Gazette planned to run a series of articles exploring warnings of an impending global water crisis. As the paper’s city hall reporter, I was asked by the editors to find a municipal angle and contribute a story in two weeks.

Immediately, I called city hall’s PR and communications people asking to speak with a civil servant who could answer technical questions on the municipal water network and how it functioned. I was told an interview would be forthcoming. Each time I called back, the person told me: “Shouldn’t be long now.”