KIMBALL, W.Va. — Work on the first phase of a water project that will eventually bring water to thousands of McDowell County residents could be finished by July of next year.
A ceremonial groundbreaking ceremony for Phase I of the Elkhorn Regional Water Project from the McDowell Public Service District was held this week in Kimball.
Crews, though, actually started installing a 10-inch water line late last month. Construction of a 400,000-gallon water tank and a water treatment plant are also part of the plans.
The first phase covers Elkhorn, Maybeury and Switchback.
In all, nearly $8 million in grants and loans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will pay for the project to replace two water systems that are more than 70 years old.
There will be several other future phases for the project.