Weirton resident sues city for water line break

WELLSBURG -- The City of Weirton is being sued after a resident claims the massive water line break earlier this month caused damages.

Ronald Gable, a Weirton resident, filed the class action lawsuit against the city and James White Construction, who was working on the water line when it ruptured, according to a complaint filed June 21 in Brooke Circuit Court.

Gable claims approximately 20,000 customers lost water service when the line broke June 8 and the city of Weirton declared a state of emergency while repairs were made. A voluntary water-conservation order was lifted June 21.

On June 10, James White Construction was working on the line and "negligently, carelessly and recklessly" ruptured the water line, according to the suit.

Gable claims the city failed to meet the level of service and reliability they promised during the incident. He also claims he suffered loss of business and loss of business opportunity because of the water line break.

During the weeklong water outage, many local restaurants had to close their dining rooms and just use their drive-thru windows for business, according to the suit.

Gable is seeking compensatory damages, including financial injury for himself and other members of the class. He is being represented by Robert Fitzsimmons of the Fitzsimmons Law Office in Wheeling.

Brooke Circuit Court case number: 11-C-91