West Virginia States for Business 2013" based on measures of competitiveness such as economy, workforce and cost of living – ranking among the bottom 5 states for the last six years running. West Virginia ranked 49th in the 2014 State New Economy Index, and has ranked in the bottom three states since 1999. West Virginia ranked last or next-to-last in critical indicators such as Workforce Education, Entrepreneurial Activity, High-Tech Jobs, and Scientists and Engineers. On January 9, 2014 near Charleston, the state capital, a chemical spill occurred that contaminated the water supply of 300,000 people in nine West Virginia counties. According to
U.S. Route 30 in West Virginia in 1927, and it was redesignated as US 30 for about in West Virginia. U.S. Route 30 in West Virginia U.S. Route 30 (US 30) is the portion of an east–west highway that travels across the state of West Virginia along what was previously WV 79. US 30 in West Virginia starts off at the corner of the Ohio River, where it immediately runs into Chester. After about , the highway has an interchange with West Virginia Route 2 (WV 2). The freeway portion that was carried over from Ohio ends shortly after. After an intersection with WV 8, US