West Virginia Residents Demand Action Over Water Crisis

LINCOLN COUNTY, W.Va. (WCHS) — Nearly two dozen Lincoln County residents packed into the Lincoln County Public Service District board meeting Thursday afternoon, demanding solutions to ongoing water outages and discolored water issues. The meeting, which allowed public comment, saw residents voicing their frustrations over what they described as a long-standing problem.

“The squeaky wheel gets the oil,” said Marietta Hale, a Lincoln County resident. “It’s time that we speak up and that we get something done. Something has to be resolved around here. People can’t live without water.”

Engineers at the meeting discussed a seven-phase project aimed at improving the water infrastructure in the district. The project, funded by grants, includes adding new water tanks, valves, and piping. However, residents expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of these measures and suggested selling the district to West Virginia American Water.

“The state gives us nothing. They won’t even give you a dime of anything unless you’re [West Virginia] American Water. Then, they will listen to you because they’re a billion-dollar company,” said Rick Wade, a Lincoln PSD board member.

After more than an hour and a half of public comments, the board entered into an executive session, closing the meeting to the public and media. Eyewitness News attempted to speak with board members afterward, but they left without comment. A few minutes later, the plant’s general manager addressed the media briefly.

“A lot of people were not happy in that meeting,” Eyewitness News asked. “No, they wasn’t but we’re doing the best we can and that’s all we can do,” the general manager responded.

West Virginia American Water issued a statement regarding the situation: “West Virginia American Water is aware of the challenges facing the Lincoln Public Service District and the impact these have had on customers. As a company committed to providing reliable water service to communities across West Virginia, we are always open to exploring opportunities that benefit customers and strengthen water infrastructure. West Virginia American Water will continue to evaluate all options to determine how we could best serve the needs of Lincoln County and provide access to safe, clean, and reliable water service for the region.”

Residents plan to take their concerns to the Lincoln County Commission during its next meeting in February, hoping for more decisive action to address the water crisis.