A railroad worker figured out how to send thousands of gallons of drinking water by rail from Mississippi to the Navajo Nation to alleviate the water crisis [Video]

Andrew Halter had been in the railroad business for 25 years, mostly in middle management roles. It was his dream job and all he ever wanted to do.

But when the world shut down in 2020, and he got laid off, he needed to figure something else out.

“It came to me one day like a clap of thunder,” Hatler, who is based in Pennsylvania, told Business Insider.

Halter and his brother had long talked about the possibility of using rail to help alleviate the water crisis in the Navajo Nation. His brother, Chris Halter, runs the St. Bonaventure Indian Mission and School, located on the southeastern edge of the reservation, which spans more than 27,000 square miles across parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.

Nearly a third of Navajo Nation residents do not have access to reliable, clean drinking water, according to the tribe. The estimated population was over 165,000 in 2020, according to census data.

The mission …