Family says repeated cable incidents in their Alief neighborhood have disrupted their yard and raised concerns after a wire struck a young child.
HOUSTON — An Alief mother says repeated problems with low-hanging fiber internet lines in her neighborhood have turned into a safety concern after a wire struck her young daughter.
Sarah Teran, who lives off Treewater Drive, said overhead communications lines have been damaged multiple times in the two years she has lived there.
“This has happened three times,” Teran said.
The most recent incident happened Thursday while Teran was in her backyard with her children. She said a crane truck with a City of Houston logo hit a communications line, causing the wire to snap and strike her daughter in the head.
Teran said the response from workers at the scene was frustrating.
“They had no sense of urgency, no accountability,” she said. “They just pulled the cord down and threw it on their property.”
Teran reported the incident through the city’s 311 line. The fiber line belongs to AT&T, though Teran said she uses a different internet provider. Some of her neighbors experienced service outages after the line was damaged.
“Although I don’t have AT&T, it keeps happening,” Teran said. “It directly impacts me more because they’re going in and out of my yard every time it happens.”
By Friday night, AT&T crews had returned and raised the wire back to its original position, marking it with orange ribbons.
Teran said that fix is only temporary. She believes a permanent solution which could include installing the fiber lines underground, is needed to prevent future incidents.
“I called, and nobody seemed really concerned about a cord hitting a child,” she said.
In a statement, a City of Houston spokesperson said the issue had been resolved.
An AT&T spokesperson said the company confirmed its cables “are currently at the proper height” and added that it is committed to preventing service disruptions, including those outside its direct control.
Teran said she hopes officials will take further action so her family can safely use their backyard without worrying about the lines.
“That’s really what I want to end — the disruption,” she said. “We spend hours outside in our backyard, and we don’t want that to end every time the city is going in and out of the property.”
Teran lives in City Council District F. Councilwoman Tiffany Thomas said in a statement that while she acknowledges the homeowner’s concerns, AT&T has accepted responsibility for the low-hanging cable. Thomas said her office will also notify the neighborhood’s homeowners association about the situation.
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