Katie's Story

Oil drilling has triggered a frantic level of prosperity in Katie’s formerly quiet corner of western North Dakota in recent years, bringing an increase in the economy with the lowest unemployment rate in the country.  But with this frenzy has turned the small town of Watford City into a fury of traffic jams, deteriorating roads, and temporary housing haphazardly placed from one end of town to the other.

Katie was born and raised in Watford City, obtained her education in this area, and now works in a natural gas plant.  She grew up in the laid back town where she knows most people by name.  This town of 1500 has served her and her family just fine, thank you very much.  That was until the most recent oil boom; with engineers finding new ways to obtain oil that was previously unreachable the town has multiplied beyond imagination.  Bars where locals would congregate to shoot the breeze are now over-run with traveling roughnecks who had never heard of Watford City and most couldn’t have pointed out North Dakota on a map.  “Bars are off limits now, fights are so common the locals know it is better to just stay away” Katie says.  Police investigated their first home invasion in, well so long ago none of the officers were on the force the last time a home burglary like this happened.  Both locally owned pharmacies have been broken in, more than once.  The most recent involved a welding truck and a cutting torch and resulted in a large hole where the door once stood.  Every last prescription pill was taken from the ransacked business.  $16,000 of narcotics went missing in the middle of a power outage. Before this year, small incidents of shoplifting -- like someone pocketing a Chap Stick -- were the only crimes the pharmacy owner had encountered

When you bring in a population of workers more than the original size of the town, you can imagine the problem of housing.  Companies began purchasing any piece of land they could place a trailer or quickly build living quarters, many times close enough to reach out your window and touch your neighbor’s home.  Regulations were not in place to direct temporary housing, causing many problems including the placement and condition of what could be considered a homestead. 

Katie longs for the day her small, lovable town will return to what to her is considered normal.  She realizes the boost in the economy is good for the local residents, but will the damage outweigh any gains is her largest concern.  She emphatically wishes the new comers would understand, that one day when the growth slows down and the work is not so frantic they will move along.  As they leave the boom behind there will still be folks who fondly call Watford City home.