West Virginia town scrambles to deal with sinkholes; official says city lacks resources

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Officials in West Virginia are scrambling to deal with an increase in sinkholes across the city.

Huntington Water Quality Board assistant director Wes Leek tells The Herald-Dispatch (http://bit.ly/1JdIUov ) that the city doesn't have the resources to address the problem proactively. Instead, he says the city is trying to take care of needs on an emergency basis.

Leek says the board gets at least three sinkhole-related calls a week.

Water Quality Board executive director Lou Akers says his department initially estimated it would cost around $700 million to overhaul the entire sewer system. He says he was able to reduce that to about $375 million, but the city of Huntington still can't afford such a project.

City officials say heavy rain and aging infrastructure have contributed to the problem.

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Information from: The Herald-Dispatch, http://www.herald-dispatch.com