WYOMING COUNTY, W.Va. — A new well is needed.
Dean Meadows, director of the Wyoming County Office of Emergency Services, said that is what it will take to permanently fix the water issues that have caused shortages for customers of the Ravencliff McGraws Saulsville Public Service District for weeks now.
“It’s really getting to be a serious situation,” Meadows said on Friday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
For 40 years, he said the PSD has used water from an abandoned mine site, via a well, as its source.
“Apparently, there’s been some kind of subsidence underground that’s compromised the water flow,” Meadows explained.
Earlier this month, a mandatory conservation order was issued for customers of the Ravencliff McGraws Saulsville Public Service District when available water in the well source reached critically shortage levels.
In response, the Wyoming County Commission issued a State of Emergency declaration.
Governor Jim Justice directed the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management to work with with the PSD to “meet their short-term emergency needs” and “explore all available state resources.”
The system serves nearly 1,400 locations including Wyoming East High School, Glen Fork Elementary School, Twin Falls State Park and the Southern West Virginia Community and Technical College along with nursing homes and assisted living homes.
“We’ve got to work quickly,” Meadows said of a long-term solution.
.@mdmeadows talks with @HoppyKercheval about the water problems in Wyoming county and the plan moving forward. WATCH: https://t.co/wkudfIAoe1 pic.twitter.com/iGbkomynqh
— MetroNews (@WVMetroNews) December 27, 2019
For now, water service for the Ravencliff McGraws Saulsville PSD was being supplemented with water from an alternate source, a nearby creek.
That water was being pumped into the PSD plant to keep the system at about 450 gallons per minute.
“We’re talking about a plant that usually pumps around 900 gallons per minute, so it’s a lot of low pressure, but we’re able to keep the water at this point,” Meadows said. Tank filling was being prioritized.
Prepping a new well could take anywhere from three months to six months, once funding is in place.
“It’s going to be quite an expensive project, but it’s the only way we’re going to be able to secure this problem long-term,” Meadows said.