A small town in Southern Colorado could soon face a serious water crisis. The water level in the wells in Aguilar has dropped drastically. Now residents are trying to decide what should be done to keep the town from running out of water by this summer.

Last summer, during the dry hot months, water levels dropped in Aguilar. It's already happening again, and no one expected the water to fall off this soon.

Population 670, the town gets its water from a nearby canyon. The problem--- one of the springs in that canyon has dried up and the water level in several wells keeps dropping. The water department's Mark Piano checks the levels every week. "We noticed levels started to drop more than usual."

Another bad sign---there should be a small stream flowing through a nearby creek bed, but it's completely dry. The creek dried up last summer and hasn't come back Piano is worried that that the town of Aguilar could run out of water in four or five months. "We were having problems last summer, but not to the degree we'll have this summer"

Town leaders want to take measures now to avert a summer crisis. "Last year we could water our lawns a couple of day of week, but this year---I don't know," says Mayor Frank Montera. That's why he says he's encouraging everyone to conserve water.

The town council may also cut water usage to homes and increase rates. A public meeting was held in Aguilar Tuesday night, so that everyone knows just how critical this water issue is. After that, the council will then meet on Thursday to take action.