Mahmod "Kenny" Alrihimi, from Yemen, has been in business in Stratford for over 20 years and has never seen the economy this bad. His son Zamzami, 9, plays outside the store. Most of the commercial corridor of Stratford, like many impoverished Central Valley towns, is shuttered and closed down. Stratford, in California's Central, is one of many towns in the region that is being sucked dry by the state's historic drought. Businesses have shuttered and fled as have many residents. The town has no gas stations, restaurants, coffee shops or even a hardware store.
