FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – A complaint about cold showers alerted Fort Worth and Atmos Energy to a complicated problem for a senior resident, which they fixed with a simple, cost-free solution.
Norma Thoms now has hot water again in her home in the Arlington Heights neighborhood, and new gas lines with no leaks.
A Fort Worth-based plumber completed the repairs at no charge Thursday, July 1 after a flurry of calls and emails between the city and the natural gas supplier to track down the problem.
Thoms called city code compliance Wednesday after living with no hot water for more than a week. The senior believed it was related to recent utility work near her home, but didn’t know the details.
Code enforcement passed the issue to risk management, who called Becca Owens, a customer solutions analyst who would be able to find out what projects were in the area.
Owens determined Thoms’ gas had been shut off since a city contractor damaged a gas line nearby, and during repairs, Atmos discovered a leak in Thoms yard and likely her home.
“So they wanted to get into the home to run some tests, but the resident was unfamiliar with the process, very uncomfortable, so she shut herself inside the house and stopped communicating,” Owens said.
Leaks on a homeowner’s property are their responsibility to fix. In this case though it was clear to those involved they may have to step in to help.
Owens said a supervisor for their inspections group called Tommy Davis with Atmos, a…
