A street in Houston was left with a dangerous three-feet-deep hole after private contractors illegally dug it out for a water connection. While neither the developers nor the city came to properly fill it back in — or even warn drivers of the hazardous road — cars were constantly getting stuck and damaged. Until one fed-up resident stood inside the hole, snapped a photo, and released it on social media. The photo went viral, and the hole magically disappeared. (See video below, posted by 12NewsNow.)
From CBS News:
Houston Public Works responded to Pettitt's social post by saying, "Thank you Ed Pettit for alerting us to this location in the Third Ward. This hole was NOT created by #HouPublicWorks crews. Our team found private contractors trying to connect to a city water line, without the proper permits, which created the hole. HPW is working to repair the roadway and ensure the contractors have the correct permits for their work."
Pettitt swiftly responded to HPW, while tagging city officials in the post, saying, "It doesn't matter whether our road conditions in Third Ward are caused by City disinvestment, private negligence/malfeasance, or Acts of God — these dangerous conditions shouldn't be tolerated! Thank you for following up and holding private contractor(s) accountable."
A few days later, the city sent workers to fill the hole. "It's unfortunate, but if you want to get the city's attention, sometimes you have to be a little bit theatrical and post on social media," Pettitt told KHOU.
