HOUSTON — We have an update to a story we told you about on Tuesday night. A north Houston woman who was locked in a back and forth with the City of Houston over a water leak that wasn't her fault is finally getting some help.
On KHOU 11 News at 10 p.m., we shared 71-year-old Annette Harrison's story. She said the water leak was caused by a garbage truck weeks ago and it was never fixed. A neighbor captured video that shows that.
Instead, Harrison, 71, was sent a water bill of more than $900 last month. The city also cut off her water.
After our story ran, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner got involved. Then on Wednesday morning, KHOU 11 was back out at Harrison's house as a Houston Houston Public Works crew was doing the repairs. We'll let you know when it's complete.
When we talked to Harrison on Tuesday, she said she told city officials what happened, but she claims they didn’t believe her and told her she would be responsible, but surveillance video might make them think otherwise.
Harrison moved out of her house after the city cut off her water on Friday.
Since she can't take a shower, use her bathroom, wash her dishes or do a lot of other things, she left. She's also dealing with the realization that she's not in the best of health.
Despite repeated calls and requests she has made with the city, nothing helped.
"My water meter still not working, still broke," she said. "Still don’t have any water."
For more than a month, Harrison said she’s spent countless hours trying to navigate the city’s bureaucracy, time spent being shuffled among its various departments.
"This is how the city is, you know, they don’t take care of their elderly," Harrison said.
Harrison's last water bill before the incident with the garbage truck was a little more than $35. After the damage was done to the meter, it was more than $900.
"It’s well over a grand and something now," Harrison said.
Harrison said she had a tough time convincing anyone that her water meter was broken even though she told them she wasn't responsible for the damage. She said the city told her to contact Waste Management because it was their truck, but according to the video, the City of Houston crest appears to be on the side of the truck.
"They were just going to keep ignoring it if I hadn’t brought those pictures around," Harrison said.
Luckily, her neighbor’s surveillance camera shows what happened that day in the middle of January. In the video, you can see the garbage truck as it pops up in her yard. The tire of the truck pauses on top of the water meter box.
On Tuesday, a Houston Public Works spokesperson said the city is looking into the issue and they definitely want to get her water service restored as soon as possible. The spokesperson said they hope to learn more about the repairs to the meter on Wednesday.
For Annette Harrison and her family, that can’t come soon enough.