Wayne begins flushing water system; residents struggle during water crisis

WAYNE COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) – It has been a week since some Wayne County residents lost clean water after vandalism led to an oil leak at a mine in the East Lynn area.

Many gallon jugs and cases of bottled water have been handed out to help people get by, but the county announced they have a plan in place.

Wayne Mayor Danny Grace shared on Monday night that after a meeting with several agencies, they decided the next step would be flushing pipes for the impacted areas and eventually sampling randomly selected homes.

On Tuesday morning, a closed meeting was held with the Office of Environmental Health Services.

By Tuesday evening, it was announced that the overall flushing and testing process is expected to take seven to 10 days.

Earlier Tuesday, Mayor Grace said they would be discussing a plan about how they would begin to flush the pipes. He explained that there’s a certain protocol they have to follow.

The West Virginia Department of Health told us that flushing will begin on Tuesday. They’re estimating it will take two to three days to fully flush. They said after the flushing is completed, additional sampling will be conducted, and only after that will customers be able to use their water normally again.

Mayor Grace said it was OK for people to run water through their pipes to keep them from freezing overnight and into Wednesday. He said as long as you don’t consume the water, you’re perfectly fine.

Also, after speaking with some community members we asked for clarification from Mayor Grace about when the community was notified about the leak. He told us he reported it to the DEP on Tuesday, which is when the leak was found, and then he began telling the community on Thursday.

We also asked him how he was getting the word out about it, and he told us it was through phone calls and their community pages.

Mayor Grace said he was waiting until he heard that people were being impacted before he started spreading the word.

Meanwhile, residents are struggling during the ongoing water crisis.

Amber Blankenship lives along Route 37 near East Lynn.

She’s been among those picking up water at Wayne Town Hall and using that for cooking, to wash dishes, and for personal hygiene.

“It’s a difficult situation for a lot of people,” she said. “It just disrupts your entire life when you have to rely on bottled water to do everything.”

East Lynn Elementary is one of four schools that was closed Tuesday because of the water situation.

Principal Marsha Thompson said on Tuesday staff prepared packets and online lessons. They’re not sure exactly when students will be able to come back, but the staff is preparing as if they’ll be out all week.

“You prepare for the worst or the most of whatever might happen,” Thompson said. “Then you have to go and be flexible with whatever you have prepared.”

Wayne County Schools announced that East Lynn Elementary, Wayne Elementary, Wayne Middle and Wayne High Schools will remain closed on Wednesday.

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