CLEVELAND — A Cleveland mother with two toddlers at home says her gas was cut off during the COVID-19 outbreak, despite calls to the utility pleading to restore it.
Mary Robinson says she received a notice from Dominion Energy advising her that her gas service would be cut off on March 23 if a $300 bill was not paid.
Instead, it was abruptly cut off on March 13 — three days before the utility announced it would not be terminating service to anyone during the coronavirus pandemic.
Robinson says calls to restore service at the home where she lives with her two small toddlers got nowhere until she reached out to News 5 for help.
A family member said they were contacted immediately by Dominion after we raised questions--adding the utility "was very helpful and courteous" in contrast to earlier calls.
A spokesperson for Dominion told News 5 the gas would be turned back on later today and is looking into what led to the confusion.
Last Friday, Dominion announced it would be working with families facing facing shut off notice to maintain gas service plus restoring gas to homes that had previously been disconnected.
A similar program was also announced by Columbia Gas.
Columbia Gas released the following statement:
"I can tell you that an estimated 1300 customer accounts avoided termination based on our decision to suspend shut-offs during the difficult time. I'd like to reiterate the statement made by our president, Dan Creekmur, that our top priority remains the health and safety of our customers and employees, and we also have a responsibility to support our communities, those who are vulnerable, and the healthcare providers who are on the front lines of this pandemic."
Dominion Energy released the following statement:
"Ron, while numbers are changing daily, we currently have several thousand customers whose service had been disconnected. Dominion Energy Ohio’s business continuity plans are in place with a high priority on reconnecting residential customers previously disconnected due to non-payment.
If a customer would like to be reconnected, they should contact us at, 1-800-362-7557, and we’ll work with them to reconnect their service.
As you can imagine, call wait times may be longer than usual and we’re asking for patience from our customers.
It’s difficult to say how long it will take to complete all the customers reconnections because there are a few variables. However crews are working to restore service as quickly as possible.
For those customers requesting service reconnection, when a Dominion Energy Ohio employee arrives at your home, please know we are taking extra precautions.
Expect Dominion Energy personnel to ask a series of questions before they proceed. For the safety of customers, and their own safety, our employees will wear rubber gloves when entering homes, and in some instances special protective gear. If the coronavirus is suspected in a home and we are required to enter, disposable coveralls will also be used. Customers can assist by maintaining a six-foot separation from our employees to minimize risk."
