WCPO's Ryan Houston helps solve your problems in "Houston, I Have A Problem."
CINCINNATI - A broken street light in Bond Hill left neighbors concerned.
Not only was it too dark to see on their stretch of Laidlaw Street, but multiple residents said someone broke into their cars.
"A criminal will look for any small spot in any area where he can get away with something. Especially if it's dark enough," said Rodney Lyons.
Lyons, a retired property owner, contacted 9 On Your Side and sent cell phone video of what it looked like with a street light out near his house. He said the darkness gave cover for bad guys to steal a tire off his car, break into his neighbor’s car and a lot of other dark activities.
"There's shootings, robbers, drug dealers,” Lyons said. “We'd like to have as much light as we can get. If it's there, it should work."
I took a picture of the power pole with the numbers on it and emailed it to Duke Energy. The company's spokesperson said they would look into. The very next day, Lyons sent a picture of a Duke Energy crew fixing the street light.
"I saw a guy going up in his truck and five minutes later he was gone. It took five years to do that," Lyons said. "The neighbors are ecstatic. Thanks to 9 On Your Side.”
Duke Energy said they fixed several lights on that street after we contacted them. The company also told us today they had zero requests for street light repairs. If you notice a light out in your neighborhood, you can report a problem to Duke Energy here. Also check out Duke's customer service section here.
Read the following email response from Duke Energy Spokesperson Sally Macy Thelen:
"Ryan, Upon your email yesterday, Duke Energy dispatched a crew to investigate the streetlight in question on Laidlaw. Upon arrival our techs observed it needed a new replacement light and performed that work."During their work they were approached by two separate neighbors, one happy about the replacement and another who was not.
"Overnight, we also did a drive of the area and observed four additional lights out. We submitted trouble tickets in the streetlight outage system to have those assigned for replacement as well. These lights are not near the initial inquiry that you wrote me about. We anticipate the lights will be replaced by Monday.
"We did have two streetlights that were repaired after being called in on Sept. 8 near 1325 Laidlaw. As I said yesterday, we have a streetlight reporting tool that can be used online anytime. A customer would need a tag number on the pole to fill out the request."
Have a problem and need some help? Let us know, and we may include it on a future edition of "Houston, I Have A Problem." Email ryan.houston@wcpo.com or call 513-852-4976.
