Canyon’s ‘water man’ recognized for service

As the water system operator for three Canyon communities, Ben Shafer is used to his phone ringing. He’ll often get 20 calls a day, from people inquiring about their bill to whether he’s shut off their water.

The shut off question this time of year is an ominous one for the customer. Because almost all of the time he hasn’t shut off their water, instead, their pipes are frozen. 

The busy days don’t come during the freeze, he said. It comes when the weather warms back up and those frozen pipes begin to leak.