CLEVELAND, Ohio — A longtime Cleveland resident is fed up and demanding answers.
He's furious over several streetlights burnt out across the City of Cleveland.
He says they've been broken for weeks.
So he came to News 5 to get help.
Robert S. Carillio told News 5 that the City of Cleveland and Cleveland Public Power need to fix the lights ASAP for the safety of everyone across town, especially with several big events around the corner.
"It's kind of like whack a mole with the issue," Carillio said.
Carillio is hoping to shine a literal light--on what he says is clearly a dark problem, plaguing the city of Cleveland.
"All out. Cold. Dead out," Carillio said.
From late nights to early mornings, he says several streetlights at multiple locations are burnt out, off or malfunctioning altogether.
"They're flickering, up and down, looks like you're in a dance club sometimes," Carillio said.
But he's not doing a happy dance over this situation.
Carillio says he's admittedly worried for walkers and drivers.
What prompted him to reach out to News 5 is that he works in sales and is driving around town on the road late at night.
He's questioned his safety.
"If you are somebody that has ill intent somewhere, you've got lots of hiding places," Carillio said.
So, we checked on the problem spots to verify his claims.
He provided the following list of lights out:
-Right in front of the Federal Building.
-Right in front of the Mayor's Office/City Hall.
-On Huron Road between Ontario Street and Superior Avenue, specifically behind Tower City.
-On Lakeside Avenue by the Hilton Hotel.
The lights were out and not working at each location.
"It's safety. It's pride even. The city to show whatever we can at least keep the lights on," Carillio said.
This isn't the first time we've reported on an issue like this.
Carillio told us about light outages along Deadman's Curve's dark underpass in November of 2023.
RELATED: Cleveland Dead Man's Curve underpasses left in darkness, drivers report lighting issues
It drew concerns from drivers and ultimately led to a future fix.
“My message is that I hope that in all places where we’re traveling, especially in the city, that the lights are working especially in dark places," Rashourn Arrington of Euclid said.
We took Carillio's latest concerns over the lights directly to the City of Cleveland.
A spokesperson told us they would loop in their colleagues at Cleveland Public Power.
We reached out to Cleveland Public Power for an interview and a statement.
A spokesperson there told us:
"CPP crews are currently troubleshooting underground lighting circuit issues downtown, repairing equipment, and replacing cable. CPP expects to have these lights back on soon and repair the majority of street light outages within 30 days."
Carillio claims he has filed multiple complaints. We even asked him directly about the responses he's received.
"They say they're on it," Carillio said.
City leaders and Cleveland Public Power are encouraging residents to report outages--so they can fix them.
News 5 will continue to follow through on this story and follow up with Carillio and Cleveland Public Power about permanent fixes.
