Gas Leak outside, Atco won't fix it.

[CapnCrunch]

Some time last November I noticed a natural gas odor outside our home near our gas meter. I called Atco, they sent a guy out and after some poking around he found a small leak coming up from the underground pipe. He said he'd put in a ticket and they'd come and fix it. Nobody calls or comes to fix the leak.

Fast forward this spring, I call Atco again, since nobody has come to fix it yet, and they say they're going to send someone out again. Time goes on, nobody comes and no repair is done.

Now this past weekend I was poking around in the yard and noticed that the odor seems to be getting stronger.

I obviously don't want this gas leak to keep going on, and Atco doesn't seem to care too much about it. Is there any way I can force them to come out and fix this? I'm a little surprised how casually Atco seems to be treating this. I've always assumed that a gas leak was an important thing to get fixed right away.

What should my next step be here?

[Tik-Tok]

Call 911, don't mention the history, just tell them you smell what you think is a gas leak.

[Nufy]

Call 911 and report a gas leak in your neighborhood.

Eventually they will discover it is at your house.

[CapnCrunch]

Fair enough, but if I call 911, aren't they just going to tell me to call Atco?

I just want this shit fixed.

[dirtsniffer]

maybe, just call the fire non emergency line? instead of 911.

[Tik-Tok]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch
Fair enough, but if I call 911, aren't they just going to tell me to call Atco?

I just want this shit fixed.

They send both Atco, and the fire department. If the fire department knows about it, it won't get left for long.

Originally posted by dirtsniffer
maybe, just call the fire non emergency line? instead of 911.

Right off of Atco's website...

If you smell gas outside a building

Call ATCO Gas or 911 immediately.
Keep people away from the area.
Do not smoke or light any flames.

[eblend]

Weird, I had a leak once and they fixed it the same day.

[yellowsnow]

very strange how they aren't fixing it.. i smelled a gas leak inside my house one time. called the non-emergency line, and they told me to call 9-1-1, and to leave the house immediately. Atco gas came right after the firemen, and checked everything out.

gas leak is a pretty major problem

[CapnCrunch]

Originally posted by yellowsnow
very strange how they aren't fixing it.. i smelled a gas leak inside my house one time. called the non-emergency line, and they told me to call 9-1-1, and to leave the house immediately. Atco gas came right after the firemen, and checked everything out.

gas leak is a pretty major problem

I know right? It blows my mind that they've just brushed it off twice.

[suntan]

Atco is a very poorly run company. It's a wonder they get anything done at all.

[avishal26]

Have you called 911 yet? Don't brush this off as a poor customer service issue - gas leak right outside your house is very dangerous and could ignite very easily.

It is possible that insurance coverage could be a problem if you knew about the leak... but didn't call 911 like you're supposed to.

[Kloubek]

Originally posted by CapnCrunch


I know right? It blows my mind that they've just brushed it off twice.

That's just plain fucked up. It's GAS people!!

[Mitsu3000gt]

Call 911. As soon as the fire department is involved and a report has to be generated, you can bet it will be fixed ASAP. It's not something to take lightly (I know you aren't but ATCO seem to be). You also might mention they refused to fix it in the past *twice* when everyone shows up, so that makes it into the report as well.

[DeleriousZ]

light it up. that'll get them to come fix it

[ga16i]

Building a flare will get their attention.

[nzwasp]

When i had atco out at my house checking the lines etc. I was talking to the guy and he said they get paid around 30k. If i was getting paid 30k i wouldnt have motivation to do anything.

[Stealth22]

Call either 911 or the CFD non-emergency line.

But tell them the whole story. Last thing you want is to get in trouble because you knew about the leak. Just say you thought it was minor, and since ATCO wasn't rushing over to fix it, you didn't think it was an emergency. Then the smell got worse, and you decided to call.

[avishal26]

Originally posted by Stealth22
Call either 911 or the CFD non-emergency line.

But tell them the whole story. Last thing you want is to get in trouble because you knew about the leak. Just say you thought it was minor, and since ATCO wasn't rushing over to fix it, you didn't think it was an emergency. Then the smell got worse, and you decided to call.

+1

[CanmoreOrLess]

Call the fire department, explain your process so far. I'd mention your wife likes to smoke outside near the leak, which is also near your BBQ with a spark auto-start. You're wondering if this is OK? As it has taken months to get a repair started, it must be safe, right? The fire department will be there right away if it is a leak, in under 15 minutes.

[mr2mike]

Sometimes if they don't detect anything it is because there's a breeze in the air.

But anytime I've called, they're usually right on it. Another time, they couldn't find the leak and just left it.