This doesn’t sound like much of a headline, until you realize the issues behind it. Craig Gherke worked his final day as Chief Operator for the Grantsville Municipal Water System on Sunday, May 19th, 2024. For three years Craig served as an operator at the Water Plant, having trained under David Johnson who worked 30 years for the Grantsville Water System and retired, leaving Craig to the Chief’s position in October of 2023. Craig was more than aware of the strain that the system put both physically and mentally on staff. When David retired in October of 2023, Craig became the next seven day a week victim of the system. It’s not only the hours, but the responsibility and accountability of the county’s only source of water. Safety measurements and testing by the State of West Virginia are extreme, as they should be. But what shouldn’t be, is the absolute failure of the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (Environmental Division) who offer no support or encouragement for Operators, and the State of West Virginia who has failed to recognize and address the crisis level of water and sewer systems. Calhoun County is not the only county facing issues. Multiple counties across the State have operators on the verge of retiring without an operator waiting to take over. An operator in training from start to finish is a two year program and an almost guaranteed job waiting on them, but most plants fail to have a operator in training because of the fiscal toll it takes and their failure to realize the dire straight they’re going to be in if they lose their current operator.
Ridgeview News has addressed this in prior stories, and will no doubt address it again, when the next operator wears down after working seven days a week, 365 days a year with perhaps an occasional break from a certified relief operator. The Town of Grantsville has hired Chad Drennan of Gilmer County as the new certified chief operator. The current operator in training at the Grantsville System is at a minimum of one year from being certified to operate the system alone. The operators in the Public Service Districts are WD operators which takes less time and training, than Class II Operators as required by the Grantsville treatment plant.
What does this mean to average citizen? Nothing, unless the new operator decides the stress is too much and he quits as well. If Grantsville doesn’t have a certified operator, everyone in the city and psd territories would be on a boiled water notice. Restaurants would likely close. Schools, which are currently about to be out of session, would have to have bottled water brought in, the hospital would have to have water supplied through another means or face closure. Homes would be at risk. But by all means State Health Department (environmental division)…. Continue to not answer the phone for your operators or assist in the crisis.
WV Legislators, this falls to you as well. This is not an over dramatic editorial. This is a publisher pulling the siren in the State Capital.
I do not think all of the blame can go to the state. There had to be local officials in previous years that were either aware and neglected the systems due to a lack of knowledge or not being told about the system issues or unaware and chose to neglect it. Probably because they were unaware of the system operations. I agree you now need the state or someone to help, but previous “leaders” should also take some accountability. These issues do not appear overnight. It is from years of neglect.