FirstEnergy endangers Rivesville’s children and widow to save a few bucks

What would you think of a company that lets a live downed electric wire in a driveway for a week, for neighborhood children to pick up and be electrocuted, and blocking a 77-year-old widow from leaving her own home for a week for fear of electrocuting herself?

Not much, right?

Well, that’s what FirstEnergy, which took over Monongahela Power in 2010, did to my sister, Jackie Olesky Straight, Class of 1955, who lives in a sparsely populated section of Rivesville.

After a snowstorm brought down the line and Jackie called FirstEnergy, the company sent an employee out. He put a “danger” yellow tape around the hot wire, and left. 

FirstEnergy insisted that Jackie pay a certified electrician half of her monthly Social Security check to get the electrocution hazard removed, which she did.

FirstEnergy’s guys were already there, and could have solved the problem in minutes, but chose to put Rivesville’s children at risk and trap an old widow in her home for week since the downed power line was 40 feet from her front door and across the driveway she would have to risk her life to drive over to get onto the road and go anywhere.

Since Jackie has a generator, she didn’t need FirstEnergy’s downed electric line to keep her power going. 

But, fearing the neighborhood children would die from curiosity – literally – she bit the bullet and paid hundreds of dollars so that FirstEnergy could save comparative peanuts.

Jackie cared more about Rivesville's children than FirstEnergy.

After all, FirstEnergy is a $15 BILLION company. 

Jackie’s monthly Social Security check wouldn’t come close to paying FirstEnergy’s costs to mail out its customers' bills for the month that Jackie gave up half her income to fix the problem.

I find that outrageous!

If you agree with me, write a letter to FirstEnergy’s Chief Operating Office. 

His address is:

Mr. Charles E. Jones

CEO, FirstEnergy Corp.

76 South Main Street

Akron, OH 44308-1890

Or you can phone Mr. Jones personally at (800) 736-3402.

Also, write to the National Association of State Utility Advocates at:

NASUA

8380 Colesville Road

Suite 101

Silver Spring, MD 20910

And complain to your Senators and Congress members.

Such cavalier disregard for children and the elderly will continue unless a LOT of people register their outrage. 

Tsk, tsk-ing and going on with your life is what lets greedy corporations get away with using technicalities to put Rivesville’s children and the elderly in danger of death.

FirstEnergy is counting on apathy or a can’t-fight-rich-corporations attitude. Don’t let any company get away with that.

Outrageous!