BELLEVUE, Neb – A Bellevue property owner has been frustrated for months due to a low-hanging danger.
Dennis Thaemert, who is not even a CenturyLink customer, is requesting that a phone line that fell and has been dangling across the back of his Bellevue property for nearly a year be disconnected.
“We have made five phone calls to CenturyLink, they have sent people out, [they say] ‘Ah, we will do something,’ but we never get any action at all,” Dennis informed me.
Dennis claims he has been told that the line serves three neighbors and has an easement, so he has not been bothered by it for years.
However, a storm nine months ago left six poles leaning, snapping, or falling, causing 800 feet of heavy cable to dangle.
It is dangerous to humans and wildlife, so Nebraska Public Service Commissioner Tim Schram had to see for himself.
“We have got a public safety hazard here and it needs to be addressed,” Schram informed the crowd. “There is no excuse for this, the time it is taken to get to this point.”
Nebraska’s public service commission regulates phone providers, and Dennis is relieved that his complaint about the downed CenturyLink line has been addressed.
“I really appreciate Tim coming out here and First Alert 6’s help on this,” Dennis elaborated. “It is been ten months to try to get some action here to get this taken care of.”
The weathered wood poles finally succumbed to the elements, and Schram expects CenturyLink to remove them and bury the line.
“Hopefully we can light a fire under CenturyLink to get this resolved,” Schram suggested.
First Alert 6 contacted CenturyLink, and a spokesperson sent the following statement:
CenturyLink is aware of a short section of aging infrastructure that includes broken poles and sagging cable. We take these matters seriously, and while customer phone service has remained fully operational, we recognize the visual impact and are actively addressing it. Out of an abundance of caution, crews are scheduled to complete the removal of the poles and legacy cable by May 9. We appreciate the community’s patience as we work to complete this safely and responsibly.