DETROIT – A Detroit homeowner had his water mistakenly shut off because a neighbor in his duplex fell behind on payments, officials said.
Ron Gibson and his daughter have had to come up with creative cooking measures after the city of Detroit shut off their water Wednesday for nonpayment.
"If I wasn't paying it would be one thing, but I've actually paid," Gibson said.
Gibson's water bill shows he paid in full last month.
"I owe nothing except my current bill, which isn't due until next month," Gibson said.
How did he end up without water?
"By virtue of the fact that I live in this property I have no water," Gibson said.
Gibson owns one unit of a duplex built before 1970. His neighbor admits to falling behind in his water payments.
"This one valve looks like it controls both properties," Gibson said. "Two separate water meters."
"It's not my fault," neighbor Ken Savage said. "It's the way they built it. It wasn't me. It if was up to me, no way I would want him affected by it."
When Gibson called to explain the mix-up to city officials, he said he was floored by the response.
"I would have to have a plumber come out, have a separate cutoff valve in and then they'll turn my water on," Gibson said. "Go to hell."
Local 4 called the city and took Gibson's case straight to the director of the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department.
"It's our fault," DWSD Director Gary Brown said. "It's DWSD's fault. It's certainly not Mr. Gibson's fault."
Brown said the outdated valve needs to be fixed, but Gibson's water should have been turned back on immediately.
"We didn't do a good job of explaining that to the homeowner," Brown said.
Within minutes of tracking down Brown, a crew pulled up to Gibson's house, and his water started flowing again.