T
he West Virginia Public Service Commission has closed its investigations into the response from the two utility companies involved in a 2023 gas outage that affected hundreds of Charleston residents for days, finding that neither West Virginia American Water nor Mountaineer Gas had “systematic failures” relating to the incident.
The orders, filed Thursday, require the water company to develop maintenance standards specific to its West Virginia operations and address hand-off policies during shift changes and the re-establishment of access to paved-over valves within the next 60 days.
It also directed West Virginia American Water to file with the PSC a list of all valves identified that have been paved over or are otherwise unavailable immediate access on or before Nov. 2 and an estimate of how long it would take to identify all paved over or inaccessible valves.
In a statement Friday, Jessica Tice, a spokesperson for West Virginia American Water, said the company has received the PSC order and intends to comply.
“The company appreciates the commission’s time to look into this matter,” she wrote in an email. “West Virginia American Water will evaluate the new requirements contained in the order and comply with them on or before the scheduled compliance dates ordered by the commission.”
The gas outage was reported Nov. 10, 2023. It affected more than 1,000 people, with full gas restoration completed Nov. 27, 2023.
The PSC first opened a general investigation into what happened during the outage Nov. 16, 2023, at the request of then Gov. Jim Justice, who declared a state of emergency because of the outage.
The commission dismissed that case Jan. 26, 2024, and opened new investigations focusing on the actions the water company and gas company took in the aftermath of the outage.
Some West Side residents and officials initially complained the utilities did not communicate well enough with residents about the outage.
Aside from the PSC investigation, Mountaineer Gas also sued the water company, asserting that the water company was responsible for the outage. Charleston law firms Calwell Luce diTrapano and Forbes Law Offices also filed a class action lawsuit against both companies on behalf of affected West Side residents.
Staff from the PSC previously found that Mountaineer Gas Company’s maintenance and response were “appropriate and reasonable, given the size of the event,” and that the company worked diligently to restore gas service. PSC staff also recommended that the PSC find that West Virginia American Water had had “no systematic failures” in response to the incident.
According to PSC filing, a West Virginia American Water main near Beatrice and Madison streets on Charleston’s West Side developed a leak and flooded the nearby gas lines operated by Mountaineer Gas.
The water company’s timeline indicates the leak was first reported by customers around 1:50 p.m. Nov. 10, 2023. A work order was issued to a day shift employee, but the employee was unable to respond before the end of their shift.
At 3:50 p.m., a Mountaineer Gas employee called the Kanawha Valley water treatment plant concerning the leak and a supervisor was notified. An evening shift worker arrived at 4 p.m., and by 4:30 p.m., the employee confirmed the leak and was told by Mountaineer Gas Company staff that the leak was infiltrating the gas lines.
Water company crews worked until after midnight. By 5:15 a.m. Nov. 11, 2023, more than 15 hours after the leak was reported, waterflow had been reduced enough to allow workers to place a repair clamp on the water main, stopping the flow of water.
Field operators were unable to access valves that had been paved over, contributing to the repair time, the PSC staff wrote.
“Valves are a key component of the distribution system and their maintenance is a critical function of operations,” PSC staff wrote. “In order to properly maintain valves, their location has to be known and they must be readily accessible from the surface.”
The leak infiltrated 46 miles of gas lines on the West Side, officials said. Mountaineer Gas employees dug up gas lines at more than 300 locations to clear water from them. Workers also went door to door to restore service to customers.
Lori Kersey is a reporter for West Virginia Watch, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. West Virginia Watch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Leann Ray for questions: info@westvirginiawatch.com.
