In early January, there was a knock on Dolores K.’s front door and a Buffalo Water representative told the 81-year-old woman a sinkhole in the road in front of her house was caused by a leak in her water service line – and she had 24 hours to have it repaired or her water would be turned off.
Her daughter, Debbie, knew there was a sinkhole but hadn’t realized what had caused it or thought about who was responsible for maintaining the service line between her mother’s home and the city’s water main. She didn’t realize the cost of digging up sidewalks and roadway to access the water service lines beneath, then repairing them, also would fall on a homeowner.
“I never even thought about that. I don’t think anyone does until something bad happens,” she said.
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