05/25/2026
For real! If you get charged in these circumstances, I can help you. Give me a call. 276-988-2251.
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/18JRZ3BZdP/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Beckley Water Company vs. One Determined Handyman...
Well folks, we’ve officially entered the "Mountaineer MacGyver vs. Monthly Bills" phase of the economy.
According to the West Virginia State Police, a Raleigh County man allegedly decided that if Beckley Water Company was gonna take his water meter, he was just gonna introduce them to a little thing called “alternative plumbing.”
Troopers say Donald Carter’s water service got disconnected over nonpayment on March 5. But sometime later, utility workers reportedly showed back up and discovered a homemade jumper device hooked to the line so water could keep flowing into the house without going through the meter.
In other words, the ol’ boy allegedly built himself a Po' boy water pump.
Workers removed it.
Then workers came back the VERY NEXT DAY and reportedly found ANOTHER homemade bypass installed, like this had suddenly turned into the "Battle of Beckley Water Mountain" and Donald wasn't about to surrender.
Now before the Facebook legal scholars start hyperventilating in my comments section — yes, it’s illegal. Nobody’s saying otherwise. You can’t just turn yourself into the CEO of Carter's Roadside Plumbing Co!
But let’s not act shocked that many people are getting desperate.
Gas prices are climbing so high folks need a co-signer just to fill up a Silverado. Water bills now arrive with the emotional dread of receiving divorce papers. Electric bills now look like car payments. Internet costs more than cable with HBO used to, and somehow the internet STILL buffers every time somebody sneezes.
And groceries? Good Lord.
If you’re planning a cookout this weekend, you better hit the grocery store before the bank closes — you’ll practically need financing for those ribeye steaks.
Meanwhile, politicians keep standing at podiums telling everybody the economy is “strong” while regular people are setting at the kitchen table trying to decide which bill gets paid this month and which one gets the “maybe next time” treatment.
And remember, $6 per gallon diesel runs everything. The tractors plowing fields use diesel. The trucks hauling food use diesel. The equipment unloading food uses diesel. So every time diesel jumps, the grocery store just reaches directly into your wallet like a crackhead checking couch cushions.
According to the complaint, our buddy Donald allegedly admitted he was just trying to keep the water on until he could afford the bill.
Again… illegal? Absolutely!
But at this point, half the country ain’t reading this story thinking “what an idiot.” They’re reading it thinking, “Y’all got instructions for building one of those bypass contraptions?”
We’re really hoping for better days for Donald, and for everyone else facing similar struggles.
Stay tuned. We'll be back.
