DETROIT – A Detroit man said he waited months to get a broken utility pole removed from his backyard, so he called Help Me Hank.
Mr. Williams is a homeowner who wanted to have his family over for a barbecue to celebrate his wife's birthday.
"The 14th of next month," Williams said. "We're celebrating my wife's 103rd birthday."
But before inviting his family over, Williams said he had to deal with a problem.
"See how that grew across and the lines are all tangled up?" Williams asked. "There's a lot of wires in there that you can't see from out here."
The harsh Michigan weather snapped a telephone pole in half, leaving wires hanging and drooping. Williams said he was concerned for his family's safety.
He said he tried calling AT&T for help.
"AT&T told me I wasn't a customer of theirs so they didn't have anything to do with it," Williams said. "DTE came yesterday and said it belonged to AT&T."
Williams said DTE workers told him the wires weren't live. They said he had to figure out whose wires were attached to the pole.
"This doesn't make any sense," Williams said. "How am I supposed to find out?"
Frustrated and tired of getting the runaround, Williams called Help Me Hank.
"My son told me that," Williams said, "He said, 'Dad, you're not going to get anything out of these people. You call Help Me Hank. I'll bet you you'll get some service.'"
Local 4 reached out to AT&T and within a day, crews were out reattaching the wires and taking down the broken pole.
"We have removed the old poles and equipment and apologize for any inconvenience this has caused," said Brandy Bell-Truskey, of AT&T, in a statement. "If residents have questions about any of our equipment, they can contact our 24-hour equipment service line at 1-800-288-2020."
"Oh, I was so happy," Williams said.
He said he's glad his son told him who to call.
"I just called him earlier and said, 'Hey, you gave me some good advice,'" Williams said.
Now he's ready to celebrate his wife in a safer backyard.
If you have a similar issue, you can call the Help Me Hank team at 313-298-WDIV.