For nine months, a Prairie View man has been trying to get AT&T to raise the cable lines around his home.
Since March, John Billis has looked into his backyard with worry.
“Kids play out there. And I was more worried that they would get hurt. And I couldn't get AT&T to do anything,” Billis said. “You could jump up and grab [the wires].”
Billis is talking about AT&T wires sagging over his backyard fence.
The cables used to be much higher up prior to the replacement of a nearby utility pole this year, when Billis noticed that the workers left a lot of slack in the line.
“There's kids and a trampoline… right next to the line. And if they jump up and down, they could have grabbed it, [been] choked even,” Billis said.
According to research from NBC 5 Responds, the height of the sagging cable was lower than recommended by the National Electric Safety Code, below the minimum clearance of 9.5 feet.
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“I was willing to go up there and do it. But at 75 years old, I'm too old to get it. I don't like ladders anymore,” Billis said.
After months of trying to get AT&T's attention, Billis turned to NBC 5 Responds, which quickly sped up the arrival of help.
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"Two days later, low and behold, there's a truck out there moving the lines up where they're supposed to be," Billis said.
Billis said the change gives him peace of mind over children getting hurt or the lines collapsing from snow or wind.
A statement to NBC Chicago from AT&T addressed the change at Billis' home.
"We raised the height of our cables at this location last month. We've also reached out to the homeowner and he is satisfied with the resolution," the statement said.
While Billis is satisfied, he wishes that a simple fix didn't take this long to address.
"It's a shame. I shouldn't have had to do all of that to get their attention," Billis said.
