MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Some hanging utility lines were causing big concerns for one elderly couple in South Memphis.
But no one owned up, until they called WREG and got some answers.
Ethel and Allen Henderson say the low hanging wires outside their home on East Person were getting just too close for comfort.
“I’m about 5’6”. And somebody about 6 something could touch that wire,” Ethel Henderson said.
She and her husband Allen, both 75 years old, reached out to AT&T, Comcast and MLGW to get the lines removed. but got the same answer from all of them.
“They said they wasn’t responsible for the wires,” she said. “It didn’t belong to any one of those people. They said it didn’t belong to them.”
That left the Hendersons wondering if there was any “juice” flowing through the line.
“I don’t know if it’s live or dead. Some of them says live and some says dead. I don’t know. I’m not going to go out there and touch it and find out. ”
Their daughter, Marie Martin, decided it was time to call News Channel 3 for help.
“We contacted you because we had no one else to call. We even called the mayor’s office and they referred us. They told us to call another number. ”
Martin says the low hanging wire created what she called a “hazard zone.”
WREG started calling all three agencies to find out who owned the line.
MLGW confirmed it wasn’t a power line, and then Thursday afternoon crews from Comcast and AT&T showed up and started making repairs.
Workers removed limbs and straightened sagging poles to raise wires to a safe height.
The Hendersons are relieved the view from their front porch will now be clearer and safer.
“And I think you all did a tremendous job on helping us to get this done. We been trying to get this done for years.”
