That New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his embrace of Democratic Socialists would urge residents to set their air conditioners to 78 degrees wasn’t surprising. What was shocking, however, was that the city government of Columbus, in the red state of Ohio, would be causing utility issues for hundreds of customers.
Incompetent city government is something you can encounter anywhere you go. However, I never thought I’d experience it to such a level in Columbus, where they shut off our water during the hottest days in years.
It wasn’t just our family of seven, which includes young children and those with special needs. Hundreds of residents were affected. Why? To force compliance with new water meters. The move occurred during the recent heat wave, right before the holiday weekend.
According to a report published by ABC 6 on July 1, Columbus Water & Power had shut off more than 300 customers’ water service by that point since the heat wave started. Between June 29 and July 1, 194 customers had their water shut off. Heat indexes in Ohio those days exceeded 100 degrees.
Meanwhile, after turning off the water, Columbus had the audacity to still remind residents to stay hydrated.
Residents were supposedly contacted via mail and door hangers informing them that they needed to replace their water meter as part of the Enhanced Meter Project. Such notices were no doubt likely perceived as junk mail.
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Customers were also supposed to be reached by telephone call and mailers, but we later found out from the department that we were contacted via a number that is not ours. So we never actually received notice in that manner. I can’t speak for other residences, but we never saw seven notices.
That ABC 6 report included claims from the city that it had reached out to customers more than half a dozen times.
“George Zonders with the City of Columbus said anyone who has their water shut off for failure to schedule an EMP appointment has at least seven notifications between the initial invitation to schedule an appointment and actually shutting off the water. The policy for turn-offs prioritize the ability to turn them back on swiftly,” the report mentioned.
“Columbus Water & Power’s turn-off policy for water prioritizes the customer’s ability to address the cause of the turn-off and, more importantly, get their water service restored either later that day or the next day at the latest. This means no turn-offs are done on Fridays or the day before a holiday since our offices are closed,” Zonders said.
“Swiftly” is subjective.
While we were later told that customers were contacted when their water was shut off, we found out by our water suddenly not turning on. This included sinks, showers, and the toilet tank. Thankfully, we had enough water bottles to use for washing and drinking, though our supply was depleted.
We reached out to the department upon the water being turned off. We were on hold over the phone for hours.
We were eventually told that the water would be turned on hopefully that day by 5 p.m., or the next day.
We were without water service from Wednesday afternoon until late Thursday morning. Thankfully, we are fortunate to have family nearby who did have water.
I sent email on Wednesday evening, after 5 p.m. had come and gone, and it was clear that our water wasn’t being restored that evening. The department got back to us via a call the following Tuesday, a full six days later.
Despite our demands, the representative who spoke to us said that they would not be issuing credits.
I have yet to uncover any press releases or social media posts from the city acknowledging the severe incompetence and poor decision-making. The last press release on the website is from June 23, “Columbus Water & Power Encourages Drinking Tap Water on National Hydration Day.”
There have also been Facebook/Instagram posts since then, but there appear to be none about shutting off water. A post from June 30 shared department representatives at Impact’s Beat the Heat event. Many chimed in to reply taking issue with the new monthly billing system.
Another, from July 6, expressed hope that residents enjoyed their Independence Day celebrations and advertised a smart thermostat.
We reached out to the mayor’s office for a comment on the appropriateness of such a decision to force compliance during the heat wave, but did not hear back before publication.
I lived in New York over a decade ago. It’s a distant memory, and I feel blessed to not be subject to Mamdani’s reign. Even in a red state, though, incompetent government, to the point of creating a dangerous situation, seems to be par for the course.
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