About three weeks ago, a water main in Charleston burst and spilled its contents into a gas line, causing an explosion.

Over a thousand people were suddenly without heat for their homes. Mountaineer Gas, the provider of heat for those homes, said that it was the fault of West Virginia American Water (WVAW).

This incident reminded everybody in Charleston of the toxic chemical spill nine years ago, when 300,000 people were without drinking water for in most cases several weeks. In that situation, WVAW failed to prevent the chemicals from entering the water supply.

In full disclosure, I was personally affected by that chemical spill and WVAW’s inability to respond effectively to it. I was working as deputy secretary of the West Virginia Department of Revenue at the time, and I had an apartment in Charleston. After being without water (for drinking, bathing, cooking or anything else) for over a week, I was given instructions by WVAW for cleaning out my pipes. I followed those instructions to the letter, but soon became ill. Later, WVAW admitted that the instructions it gave were erroneous.

WVAW recently applied to the West Virginia Public Service Commission (PSC) to be granted a rate increase of about 20 percent for all its customers in West Virginia.

You may recall that a few months ago, WVAW was approved to purchase several community water systems in Jefferson County. Many citizens of our county and I objected to this purchase. We thought the purchase price (which would be underwritten by the ratepayers of the systems) was exorbitantly high, because the PSC’s own Consumer Advocate said so. Also, WVAW’s track record for service was less than desirable.

The PSC did reduce the purchase price for those systems by about 10 percent, which was still abysmally high. The PSC approved the sale, and ratepayers of those systems (some of the lowest income folks in our county) will in the future be paying through the nose for service the quality of which has been proven suspect.

Ironically, the water main that burst a few weeks ago was located on Charleston’s West Side, in a neighborhood occupied by a high percentage of very low income people.

Just prior to the break in that main, WVAW had applied to the PSC for another rate increase. I have no doubt that the PSC would have approved that request, as the PSC has in recent years become a doormat when it comes to requests from large corporate monopolies. Perhaps it is because all three members of the PSC were appointed by Governor Jim Justice, whose record is one of fawning before big corporations.

But wait. Possibly out of embarrassment, Justice recently publicly blasted WVAW. Will his minions on the PSC take a cue? I hope so.

If you want to help the people on Charleston’s West Side, you can contact West Virginia Health Right. That address is 1520 Washington Street East, Charleston WV 25311. Or you can email Director Angie Settle at asettle@wvhealthright.org.

John Doyle is a 26-year former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates. He can be reached at rjohndoyle@comcast.net.