5-figure water bills blamed on software in Girard, Ohio

  

July 15, 2013 ( GIRARD, Ohio) -- A spate of five-figure water bills in an Ohio city is being blamed on new software, but a pastor jokes his church's $93,000 bill was from using too much holy water.

The July bill sent to St. Rose Catholic Church in Girard near Youngstown was one of many erroneous statements sent to the city's water customers. The (Youngstown) Vindicator reports that the Tri-Changes hair salon got a $12,000 bill.

Residents, business owners and clergy recently descended on the city's water department seeking an explanation.

Girard public services director Jerry Lambert says the city is replacing manual-read meters with automatic readers. He says the errors are a result of software problems during the changeover.

Lambert says the statements should be "100 percent correct" by the next billing cycle in September.

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