After receiving an almost $600 water bill, a homeowner in east Orange County is crying foul.

"There's just no way, it's impossible," said Ruben Bermudez, who lives in the Wedgefield community. "We feel like we're pretty much being held hostage, because if we don't pay the bill, we don't have water. If we don't have water, we can't bathe, we can't cook."

Bermudez said his family does everything to conserve water, from five-minute showers and doing laundry once a week to letting rain fill up their pool.

Skeptical of water quality, they drink bottled water, which significantly cuts down on usage.

Bermudez said his family's water bill typically is around $200.

"We have gotten so used to it because it's the only thing that we've known since we moved to Wedgefield," he said.

Pluris, the private water company, said Bermudez's family used 33,859 gallons last month, which led to a $572.97 bill.

"It was a shocker," Bermudez said. "We've been trying to do our due diligence to try to make sense of this $500 bill."

Bermudez said they re-sodded grass and had family visit, but he is adamant that they didn't use that amount of water.

"I don't think that we can warrant a $500 — close to $600 — water bill," he said.

The man even called in a plumber who confirmed the family didn't have any leaks in the main water line. Bermudez said he then called Pluris.

"They're basically going to look at the data to pretty much prove to me how much water was used," he said. "In my opinion, there's no way we can actually dispute that."

Bermudez said he talked to people who live nearby. They also reported higher water bills.

"Someone else who lives in our neighborhood, they got a $410 bill," he said. "It just cuts back on us being able to do anything."

Costly water now has the family considering leaving the neighborhood they love so much.

"It doesn't make it that much worth living in Wedgefield anymore," Bermudez said.

News 13 reached out to Pluris to see if there could've been a meter-reading mistake or what recourse homeowners have when disputing their bill, but did not hear back.


Ruben Bermudez, who lives in the Wedgefield community, said his family does everything possible to conserve water, including buying bottled water and letting the rain fill up the pool. (Julie Gargotta, staff)