MOVING FORWARD — The Weirton Area Water Board continued discussion on the expansion of the water treatment plant, and other ongoing projects, during its meeting Thursday. -- Craig Howell

WEIRTON — The ongoing expansion project for Weirton’s water treatment plant will temporarily result in the plant being taken offline, but officials want to assure residents there will be no interruption of service.

Work on the water treatment plant’s existing clear well is scheduled for March 18, officials announced during Thursday’s meeting of the Weirton Area Water Board.

“It’s going to require a plant shutdown,” explained Utilities Director A.D. “Butch” Mastrantoni.

The shutdown is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. and is expected to take between eight and nine hours for the work to be completed.

“All of the activities will happen overnight,” Mastrantoni said, indicating plans are to ensure there will be plenty of water available within the distribution system to last the city throughout the timeframe. “We are pumping the tanks two as much capacity as we can.”

Discussions have been held with the Weirton Fire Department to alert the local tanker task force to be on call and assist with fire protection in the event of any incidents while work is being done at the water plant.

Chuck Kelly of the Thrasher Group explained plans call for draining the existing clear well and installing new plates and piping which will allow for the connection of the new clear well being installed as part of the plant expansion.

“We’re not doing anything mechanically,” Kelly said. “Mechanically, there is nothing that can go wrong.”

Kelly said, once the work is completed, the current clear well will be refilled and water filtered, noting customers may experience some turbidity, or cloudiness, in their water shortly after, but it will disappear.

Mastrantoni explained plans are to alert residents and businesses prior to the work via local news media, the city’s website, the Water Board’s alert system, and social media.

The $44 million project, under contract with Triton Construction, is designed to expand the treatment capacity at the water treatment plant from 4 million gallons per day to 8 million gallons per day.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held in August 2024, with officials currently estimating a substantial completion on the project in June, with final payment made in July.