"The Fiveash Water Treatment Plant has been kept together by spit and chewing gum for many years."

A water crisis that brought Fort Lauderdale to its knees this week further exposed the frailty of the city’s water/sewer system, spotlighting years of neglect that could leave the city in the same predicament at any time.

Lack of maintenance turned a manageable mistake into a system collapse that dried up faucets for tens of thousands of people and forced countless businesses to shut down.

Read more at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel