Action 9: Family has trouble getting power lines to new home

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — When a family had trouble getting power lines to their new home, they turned to Action 9 investigator, which found got the problem fixed and found out what took Duke Energy weeks to hook them up.
 
It's a quiet part of Kannapolis, set back in the woods, with room for horses.  Nathan Duty's family gave him two acres there.  So he and his wife put this mobile home on the site, and called Duke Energy to run power to it.  Weeks went by.
 
"It was extremely frustrating," he said.
 
In the meantime, Duty, his wife, their 1-year-old and their newborn were living in his parents' basement, waiting.
 
"It was pretty rough. A lot of people in one house -- two kids," he said.
 
Action 9 called Duke right away and its crews made it a priority. 
 
"I emailed you guys Tuesday. Your office called me back Wednesday. Thursday, Duke called. And, Friday, I had power," Duty told Action 9's Jason Stoogenke.
 
In an email to Action 9, Duke blames the wet weather, saying "completing this work was postponed due to the storm." 
 
Duty works in construction, so he's used to working with Duke and knows all about scheduling crews to do various jobs.  So, he says he understands delays, but told me he couldn't help but feel helpless for a few weeks.  "People have families and stuff they need to get taken care of."  Now his family can take care of their next project: building a barn for their horses.
 
Duke says always feel free to call 800-777-9898 about problems with your bill or service.  If you aren't satisfied with Duke's response, you can always report it to the N.C. Utilities Commission at 866-380-9816.

WSOC