HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – An Arkansas veteran was briefly forced out of his own home after he said a gas line went into his sewer line, costing him thousands.

George Dove immediately snapped pictures of the problem after it happened in January of 2021.

“The gas line had gone through my pipe,” he said. “I’ve never had that before.”

Dove discovered the problem after his Hot Springs home started to smell like natural gas. 

“When they started digging and we got down to this cavity where all this sewage was going, this is what I found,” he said.

It cost the Air Force veteran $2,000 to fix. He sent CenterPoint Energy three letters, one in January, one in April and one again in May.

CenterPoint’s Senior Communications Specialist Ross Corson said the gas company requested more evidence because the company said what Dove had was not enough proof.

“The customer filed a claim on January 21, 2021, and provided several photos, which did not show that the natural gas line actually caused the damage to the sewer line,” Ross wrote.

Ross said CenterPoint requested additional evidence.

“On May 5, 2021, additional photos were received from the customer, which again did not support the claim,” Ross wrote.

Dove said CenterPoint never replied to him, so he started writing the contractor that CenterPoint hired. He mailed a letter, dated June 28, 2021, to S&S Plumbing. He said he did not receive a reply until he sent a letter to Working4You, and within three days, someone was knocking at his door.

“There was S&S Plumbing at my door, knowing what did they do and what they can do,” Dove recalled.

S&S Plumbing Superintendent Roger Kellar said it appears Dove’s sewer service had been clipped.

“As soon as we heard about the situation, we sent one of our foremen over there that was running that job and he made contact with the gentlemen,” he said.

Kellar calls it an honest mistake and they never received Dove’s letter but wanted to make it right, right away.

“We would want to leave somebody’s yard like we would leave our own,” he said.

The owner of S&S Plumbing has been in business for decades and said this problem was never on his radar.

The Air Force veteran got his $2,000 back, something he’s battled to recoup.

“I didn’t expect anything when you called me — a couple months probably. I’ve been dealing with this for two years,” Dove said. “”We’re going to have a Christmas this year!” 

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Have a problem you need the Working 4 You team to investigate? Call (501) 340-4448.