Justice for Gary WV, McDowell County

On the morning of July 21st, the main water pump broke in Gary, West Virginia, a town of around 1000 people in the heart of McDowell county.


Gary has been one of McDowell County's most important coal-mining towns since the early 1900s, once producing nearly 1/4 of all coal produced in the county.  Subsequent declines in the industry in the 1980s resulted in upwards of 90% unemployment. 


Both the town of Gary and McDowell county as a whole have suffered from government neglect since. Basic infrastructure has become dilapidated due to lack of maintenance and now the town can't afford basic maintenance services such as water pump repairs. 


This is not a new issue. In 2017 alone, 1 out of every 3 gallons of water sold in Gary was wasted due to failing materials and leaks. In fact, this isn’t the first time the water pump has broken, with this exact same thing happening in 2018. This shutdown is uniquely harmful to the residents of Gary due to the COVID-19 pandemic and putting its aging population at risk. 


McDowell County is particularly vulnerable to fatal outcomes of COVID-19 given its prevalence of COVID-19 risk factors. In addition to being an elderly, mostly rural county, a greater share of its population are people of color (27%) compared to West Virginia (12%).  


A stable and secure supply of water for families is critical to daily life for basic hygiene, consumption, and sanitation. Kids are going back to school soon and the town health-care clinic needs water as access is especially critical now, given the emphasis on handwashing and social distancing to prevent the spread of COVID-19. 


According to city officials, the town needs around $25,000 to buy a new pump, along with another $5000 to install it. In the meantime however, there are families who need bottled water in order to fulfill their basic needs. Money donated to this fund would go to the community to go towards bottled water, and later to help cover the costs of a new pump. 


Currently, many volunteers are driving in from cities such as Beckley and Charleston, however this could increase risk of inter-city transmission of COVID-19. These efforts—while greatly appreciated and beneficial—are merely a temporary solution to a chronic problem. Direct financial donations can ensure that locals are better able to react to local needs.


Unfortunately, decades of abuse and neglect have led to inherent distrust of government in most of southern West Virginia. Tina Coleman moved back to her hometown of Gary in 2010, but feels as though there is a culture of intimidation by public officials who keep residents from speaking up about these issues.


 “We’re at their mercy and they’ve given us no other choice. If you can’t provide us our basic needs — that’s what water is to us — why would I live here?” she asked.

Water should be a human right for ALL, especially neglected rural communities that have faced these recurring issues for generations. This fundraiser is crucial for meeting the immediate needs of Gary residents, however our work would be incomplete without subsequent demands to our elected officials and Governor Jim Justice to allocate funding to invest in our crumbling infrastructure and prevent the collapse of our small towns, and ultimately West Virginia. 

Your contribution—no matter how large or small—will be making a difference in the lives of West Virginians and provide much needed assistance to the most vulnerable during these universally hard times. Y'all means ALL. 



Links:

https://www.wvgazettemail.com/report_for_america/money-down-the-drain-wv-losing-most-of-water-it-produces/article_40dbcf49-2f61-56d6-8146-ae088fa2d436.html?fbclid=IwAR1bdcKsPYASTjaK1La0z5V1autoG0UXDrqoC7VQioCMfV6lDyQXFhUtuHM

https://www.wvgazettemail.com/report_for_america/stirring-the-waters-in-southern-wv-days-without-water-are/article_a1f7e3fd-d98f-5684-9fc5-d0c8b0a18713.html?fbclid=IwAR2Xz4tJJxg52SyCIe2T_J27GEwbPl1VlOvwC9TFjMGtIHXzl704IV3BOAU

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary,_West_Virginia