3 Detroit Children Die after energy shutoff

[Powerdot16]

Three children died on Tuesday as the result of a DTE shut-off. Here is the press release that is being sent out about the Thursday demonstration at DTE:

"How many more must die?" -- Three babies die in DTE-shutoff fire

Three babies -- Trevion Young, Fantasia Young and Selena Young -- died as a result of a DTE shutoff of the gas and electricity to their home on Bangor Street, reported the Detroit Free Press online today. This brings the total murdered by DTE this season to fourteen.

Those murdered are:
Vaughn Reed
Markesha Reed
Demonte Reed
DeMarco Reed
Booker T. James Sr.
Jeffrey B. Garrett
Lynn Greer
Tyrone Allen
Marvin Allen Sr.
Welton Crawford
Davion Grant

"What kind of world do we live in where children can die a fiery death and there is no massive outcry?" said Maureen Taylor, chairperson of MWRO. "We call on everyone opposed to this constant inhumanity against poor people to join us at DTE tomorrow, Thursday, from 12-1 pm and demand an immediate moratorium on gas and light shutoffs," she said.

"This is the second time in two weeks that someone has died in a fire the day after a visit from DTE," said Gwen Gaines, organizer at MWRO. "I attended the funeral for my neighbor Jeffrey Garrett, killed by DTE, who left 10 children. I am marching tomorrow to demand an end to shutoffs so that his children will have a future," she said.


For more information please see:
Poverty Initiative http://povertyinitiative.org/
People's Tribune http://www.peoplestribune.org/
Michigan Welfare Rights Organization http://www.mwro.org

--
Michigan Welfare Rights Organization • 23 E Adams St • 4th Floor • Detroit MI 48226
Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail] or [e-mail]
Website: www.mwro.org
Blog: www.michiganwro.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=1...
Twitter: http://twitter.com/mwro

"You get what you are organized to take!"

[Craftsman]

1. The kind of world were corporations have taken over both parties

"What kind of world do we live in where children can die a fiery death and there is no massive outcry?" said Maureen Taylor, chairperson of MWRO. "We call on everyone opposed to this constant inhumanity against poor people to join us at DTE tomorrow, Thursday, from 12-1 pm and demand an immediate moratorium on gas and light shutoffs," she said.

[Echo In Light]

39. And a disturbingly large % of the populace that enables it via collective, smug denial

[leftofcool]

2. Link to the paper/article this was in please?

I would like to read the account first hand written by a reporter who investigated this.

[Dr. Strange]

5. Here's one.

http://www.9and10news.com/Category/Story/?id=210229&cID=2

Here's a Fox one.
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/local/Protesters-Blame-DTE-for-Kids-Deaths-100304

[Neecy]

8. Okay, wait

The power and gas were illegally rigged in the first place - when DTE came and shut it off, they had a handyman again illegally rig the meter again for the electricity.

They were stealing from DTE - twice! It's one thing to be behind on your bills and get shut off, it's another to jack up the meter so you don't have to pay anything.

How is DTE to blame for this? I wish I could steal power too, but gee, it's not legal.

[RaleighNCDUer]

14. When it is 20 degrees outside there is NO difference between

getting your heat shut off because you can't pay or getting your heat shut off because you rigged it to stay on because you couldn't afford it.

Either way, without it you freeze to death.

The power and gas were NOT illegally rigged in the FIRST place - that was the secondary action which comes from a 40% unemployment rate and a very cold winter.

This is not about 'stealing'. It is about 'surviving'.

[Neecy]

17. Yes, they were

From the story:

DTE Energy had disconnected an illegal gas and electric hook-up at the home earlier in the day and padlocked the meter. A handyman reconnected the electricity and gave the family a space heater because he was worried about the small children inside.

I'm sorry, but there is a difference. If they had turned on the utilities legally, they could have applied for help paying the utility bill. No one needed to freeze to death.

[RaleighNCDUer]

32. Yes, they were what?

Your reply makes no sense.

They didn't need 'help' paying the utility bill. They needed HEAT AND ELECTRICITY. Do you have any idea how many people have lost their homes, often through no fault of their own - renters whose landlords went under in the housing collapse. How many of them are surviving by squatting in empty houses and apartments, because they have no income and the safety net has been shredded?

Do you not get that at a certain point in poverty there IS NO HELP?

Why do you think they had an illegal hook up in the first place?

You just want to fucking blame the victim.

[leftstreet]

33. +1

[Neecy]

37. No, I'm blaming the adults in the household

You said this:

"The power and gas were NOT illegally rigged in the FIRST place"

I said yes, they were illegally rigged and quoted from the article confirming it.

Why do you want to blame DTE for this? They aren't responsible for squatters or anyone else stealing their services. I don't like the situation either, but I don't know what else anyone expected DTE to do. And by the way, there's no indication here that these people were squatters. If they had had the utilities hooked up legitimately there IS a social net that would have helped pay the bills. Maybe they tried, I don't know. But the adults in the household bear some responsibility for this.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

118. Are we to assume then, that ALL the dead on that list were stealing from DTE?

And not availing themselves of the social safety net provided for those who cannot pay?

[michreject]

47. Did you read this in the above link?

Simons says utilities first were shut off Dec. 11 at the request of customer moving out of the house.

The person who hooked up the service never had an account to begin with. This was theft and he alone should be held accountable. I suspect that he will. In Michigan if someone dies while you're committing a felony, you can be charged with 1st degree murder.

[RaleighNCDUer]

81. IOW, they WERE homeless squatters, simply trying to survive the winter.

Maybe you've never lived that close to the edge, but I've been there and I don't hold a person's poverty against him (or her, trying to keep her children warm and healthy in a Michigan winter).

[michreject]

99. So you think being poor

Gives you the right to take up residence in a house that belongs to someone else?

[ima_sinnic]

116. the "right"? or the desperate need, with young children

sheesh, you're a real heartful one, aren't you?
may my soul never shrivel down to such emptiness.

[michreject]

120. If you would bother to read, if you are capable

You would have read that the prior tenant moved out, requesting that the power be cut off.

Should Det Edison be required to keep the power on in every vacant house in the city? That's over 100,000 houses. Who's gonna pay the bill to keep the power on?

[ima_sinnic]

121. I was responding to your words

and reading your sig line, I know everything I need to know.

[michreject]

122. I get it now

You have no answers, just complaints.

Have a nice day.

[ima_sinnic]

123. noticed you changed your sig line

-- just in case anybody's wondering what I was talking about.
I noticed a comment about it in a thread yesterday, too--so I'm not alone in seeing thru you.

[michreject]

125. That's been my sig line since 06.

Don't know what you're confused with.

[michreject]

127. Which thread was that?

You're a donor. It should be easy to find it. Otherwise you're full of it.

[ima_sinnic]

128. sorry, my bad, I had you confused with another poster

that, I apologize for.
your sig line is fine.

[michreject]

129. No problem

and thanks for owning up. :hi:

[Taverner]

102. +100

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

50. The customer requested for the power to be cut off.

Spokesman Scott Simons says a meter at the west side home had been tampered with and power was turned off Tuesday. Fire officials say a blaze swept through the house about 6:45 p.m.

Simons says utilities first were shut off Dec. 11 at the request of customer moving out of the house.


http://www.9and10news.com/Category/Story/?id=210229&cID=2

[warm regards]

63. I wonder how people survived before the invention of electricity?

[DeschutesRiver]

97. My parents didn't have those kind of services while they were kids

And anyone further back in my family tree never had electricity or any other utility. Grandparents, great grands, as far back as you could go.

Sometimes you fly through life like that, and in an unexpected cold snap, some might die. Electricity used as commonly and as readily available as we have it today is a really recent invention in time.

[ima_sinnic]

117. oh, so they should have started a fire, they way people did before electricity?

and I don't think you would have a clue, by the way.
you are obviously one who has known nothing but privilege his entire life.

[leeroysphitz]

23. You are right. Those kids deserved to die. n/t

[Freddie Stubbs]

25. They deserved a better mother

[Freddie Stubbs]

24. Plus the mother left her small children home alone without adult supervision

[winyanstaz]

108. Perhaps she was out trying franticlly to get some help...

Perhaps she was working..trying to feed the children...you don't know..
You have never been homeless and jobless with babies have you?

[Gormy Cuss]

31. In some states it's illegal to shut off the heat source during winter months if children or fragile.

health people live in the unit --at least that used to be true. All that was necessary was to demonstrate that such people lived in the unit and the shutoff was postponed until spring.
Apparently that's not how it works in Michigan.

[Dr. Strange]

34. I'm not sure that's the case here, though.

It looks like the family may have been living here without letting DTE know.

[Gormy Cuss]

35. One of the articles you linked included a statement that DTE declined to comment on whether they had

talked to the mother. I suspect that there's a lot more to this story that may be relevant, like who had been paying the bill and whether that person made false statements about who lived there after Dec. 11. It's really a sad story all the way around because kids died after a series of failures by adults (and I include the handyman as one of the adults.)

I don't know if it's still true but it used to be that in Maine the utility company could not shut off service to residences in the winter months unless they had determined that no persons eligible for the lifeline were living at the residence. IOW, the utility company shared the burden for making the determination.

[Dr. Strange]

40. Yeah, I wonder if the DTE people made any effort to see if someone was living there.

It's really a sad story all the way around because kids died after a series of failures by adults

Sigh. Way too much of that happening.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

103. The power was turned off at the request of the previous occupant, it was never restored.

[Turbineguy]

3. Is DTE cutting off power in order to murder children?

[leftofcool]

4. One would think not. BG$E shut of over 73,000 families

in December and January and I have not heard one thing about a death. This is why I asked for a link to a newspaper article on it.

[Bluenorthwest]

9. What is BG$E?

[leftofcool]

20. Baltimore Gas and Electric

Sorry, I'm bad, not everyone lives in Maryland. Should have spelled it out the first time.

[lunatica]

7. Collateral damage is OK

It's always been acceptable in war. DTE is at war with the dead beats, even if they are little children. Life is hard, and tough shit because profit trumps people.

[leftofcool]

21. Illegal hookup, mother leaves kids at home alone with

space heater going with illegally rigged electric hookup. DTE may not have cut it off had everything been hooked legally in the first place.

[Edweird]

30. Utilities have no sense of humor about theft. We call it 'current diversion',

and it's a bigger deal than you might think.

[rucky]

96. Are you suggesting something else killed them?

They know the potential is there every time they flick the switch.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

104. For starters it was a fire that killed them.

[elocs]

6. In Wisconsin, by law, gas and power cannot be shut off during winter months.

This should be true everywhere.

[Dr. Strange]

10. What if someone is moving out of the house and asks for it to be shut off?

[TheMadMonk]

12. Smartarse. Some people think they are wits.

Often they are half right.

Occupied Dwelling.

[Dr. Strange]

18. But the previous occupant asked for it to be turned off.

(At least according to some articles.) If that's the case, then I'm not gonna blame DTE.

Unless Sylvia Young went to them and told them that she was living there and needed the power on, then maybe I can see blaming DTE.

[Name removed]

61. Deleted message

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[elocs]

13. Power cannot be shut off for nonpayment or for being behind.

Nobody here freezes in the winter because their power has been shut off.

[Dr. Strange]

19. I agree with that.

Based on what I'm reading, though, it looks like it was shut off by the previous owner. And then someone hooked it back up without letting DTE know. Which frankly sounds dangerous.

[Maine-ah]

28. same in Maine

[Name removed]

64. Deleted message

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[catbyte]

11. DTE sucks

They are rude and don't give a damn about the welfare of its customers. They are the most heartless utility company I've ever dealt with. At least Consumers Energy, the largest electric utility in Michigan, puts a moratorium on shut-offs between November and April.

DTE is scum.

:thumbsdown:

Diane

[flpab]

15. no heat

I am 56 so this goes way back when. My Dad had polio and was in the hospital for a year before he could walk again. My parents lost everything during that time when he was out of work. she had no heating fuel and ask for help and they told her they could give her food stamps but no fuel. We were farmers so had food that she had canned and froze but we about froze that winter. We lost everything but for years my parents paid off the bills to a fertilizer company. My parents are my heros and they sure set an example. My Mom got a job with three small kids and we made it. I still have Christmas gifts from the care packages a neighbor gave us that Christmas. Why in America does this still happen?

[951-Riverside]

16. Here in California Edison and the Gas Company will not shut off service for non payment

A friend of mine said you can go months without paying off your gas bill.

[leeroysphitz]

22. DTE is the f'ing DEVIL. No sarcasm.

Their customer "service" has one stock answer to everything.

Unemployed? "Fuck you, PAY me."

Elderly with fixed income? "Fuck you, PAY me."

Small kids to feed? "Fuck you, PAY me."

Medical emergency? "Fuck you, PAY me."

-20° outside? "Fuck you, PAY me."

In home medical equipment needed to keep loved one alive? Guess what? "Fuck you, PAY me."

I've actually been hung up on when trying to explain that the "past due" bill that got my power shut off had already been paid.

[Edweird]

26. The handyman and the mother killed those kids.

1) There's a reason professional tradesmen hold 'handymen' in contempt. This fire is a perfect example of how a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

2) The mother left a 3 year old, a 4 year old and a 5 year old alone at home. With a space heater. What the fuck was she thinking?

The utility company may not be popular, but they didn't kill anybody here. They clearly took reasonable steps to PREVENT THIS.

[Freddie Stubbs]

29. But its more fun to demonize a big bad corporation

[Edweird]

46. I'm no fan of corporations and I think all utlities should be government owned.

That being said, any mother that leaves a 3,4 and 5 year old alone with a space heater is asking for dead kids.

[Kievan Rus]

27. This is absolutely disgusting

Things like this happen when profits are put before human life.

It sickens me to the core to think there are really people out there that value green pieces of paper with the portraits of dead Presidents on the front or material possessions made in a sweatshop in East Asia more than human life.

Greed is an addiction, just like gambling addiction, alcoholism or crack. And tragedies like this are the addiction to material junk and money taken to its most inhumane extreme.

[Cal Carpenter]

36. So much misinformation on this thread

These people were RENTING. they moved into the house in January. The LANDLORD's illegal connection was the problem, not the mother's.

Imagine it: You are cold, you are desperate, you got babies, what're you gonna do? Huh? You're gonna find them some goddamn heat.


I can't BELIEVE the bullshit I'm reading on this thread, damn you people are cold. Colder than a goddamn Detroit winter.

Good article here about this incident:

http://wsws.org/articles/2010/mar2010/fire-m04.shtml

Less accurate but with some other details here:

http://www.freep.com/article/20100303/NEWS01/100303011/1318/DTE-had-cut-service-to-Detroit-house-hours-before-deadly-fire

For all I know these have already been posted, I couldn't bear to read this whole thread after some of these responses.

May those babies rest in peace and FUCK YOU DTE!

[Dr. Strange]

38. From the first article:

DTE Energy issued a statement that the home was illegally connected to power lines, and that electricity had been turned off in mid-December by the home’s previous occupants when they moved out. Earlier in the day on March 2, a DTE Energy employee noticed the jerry-rigged electrical connection and had the access cut off, according to a spokesman.

Is that true? And if so, did the new occupants tell DTE they were living there? If they went to DTE asking for them to turn on the utilities and DTE said no, then fuck DTE and I hope they get their asses sued off. If no one told DTE and instead just hooked up an illegal set up, then they better hope they aren't responsible for the fire--otherwise they're going to be doing time.

[Cal Carpenter]

41. The same article

says that the illegal hookup had been going on for months. Given the big picture here, I am guessing that the landlord was ultimately at fault here, not the family. For all we know, the renters didn't even know the hookup was illegal. Regardless, I am guessing that the 'handyman' was working at the behest of the landlord (read: "slum lord") to appease the family. With a gas heater, indoors, charming.

I haven't seen any comment from the landlord yet, just some publicly-available info that he is behind on property taxes. He is teh one in control, the family is vulnerable. That is the nature of landlord/tenant relationships, especially in poverty-stricken areas like most parts of Detroit (including this neighborhood, if it's where I think it is).

I could be off base - many facts are not known and there is a lot of speculation.

But DTE is not known for it's compassion. It'll throw a few hundred bucks at a charity as a sponsor to get it's name in lights but when it comes to its own services it is a monster. With high-paid executives.

Seeing people here blame the mother and absolve DTE pisses me off so much I can barely see straight. (sorry if I sound aggressive in my posting, it's not aimed at you)

Regardless of the details - any handyman providing a gas heater for indoors is a fucking idiot. Any landlord with illegal hookups, or one who is so absent as to not know this is going on at his property is a fucking idiot.

More importantly, any behemoth, for-profit energy company that allows people to freeze to death in the winter (or puts people in a situation where they resort to burning their home down to avoid it) is the fucking devil in corporate form. Aside from this particular case (which, again, we don't know all the details yet) DTE's track record is reeeeeeal bad. I wouldn't trust their 'statement' as far as I could throw it.

ETA: ANY responsible landlord in Michigan is going to be aware if the power is on because if it isn't then pipes can freeze and do a lot of damage. Another reason I think there is more to this story and this illegal hookup.

[Dr. Strange]

45. I suspect there are a lot of details that have yet to see the light of day.

Regardless of the details - any handyman providing a gas heater for indoors is a fucking idiot. Any landlord with illegal hookups, or one who is so absent as to not know this is going on at his property is a fucking idiot.

I think some people are going to be doing jail time. Probably no one from DTE though, 'cause even if they did something wrong, corporations usually just get hit with fines.

Based on your post count, I was going to say welcome to DU, but you've been here almost as long as me. Oh hell, welcome anyway! :hi:

[Cal Carpenter]

51. Yeah, maybe we'll learn the details

maybe we won't. I just gotta speak up for this mother and for all the mothers in Detroit right now who are worried about their kids freezing to death and forced to make impossible decisions. Unfortunately, you're right that no one from DTE will be held responsible regardless of what the facts are.

Thanks for the welcome! I'm mostly a lurker but some things get me a little riled up :hi:

[Edweird]

42. I had no idea that landlords were required to pay your utility bill in Michigan.

Every place I've lived, I was required to establish my own connection.

[Cal Carpenter]

43. Huh? I never said landlords were 'required' to pay utility bills in Michigan...

Although I have been a renter in 2 places in Michigan (one of which was a house, one was an apt) where the utilities were rolled into the rent and the landlord actually paid the bills.

According to that article the illegal connection had been set up for 'months' - that article and another one I read make it seem likely that the illegal hookup was already established when the family moved in. There is a lot of speculation about what happened and a lot we don't know for sure. I don't want to repeat myself too much, please see my most recent post above for more of where I'm coming from here.

ETA: ANY responsible landlord in Michigan is going to be aware if the power is on because if it isn't then pipes can freeze and do a lot of damage. Another reason I think there is more to this story and this illegal hookup.

[Edweird]

44. Here's how it works:

If the landlord has one meter feeding multiple units, then they are responsible for connecting utilities - legitimately. No 'handyman' bullshit.
If the renter has their own meter, they are responsible for establishing service. Again, legitimately.

Which was it?

The utility company had nothing to with: 1)the fact that an unqualified person made a connection - which they actively tried to prevent or 2) the fact that the mother left a 3,4 and 5 year old ALONE WITH A SPACE HEATER. Illegal connection or not, that fact by itself should get her jail time.

Mr. Handyman should expect jail time, and if the landlord was responsible he should as well.

[Cal Carpenter]

48. Which was it?

We don't rightly know, do we?

What I do know is that there is a really sickening pattern in cases like this, where many facts are unknown, for people to blame the least powerful party in a situation. There is a sickening pattern of people coming to the defense of a slum lord or a huge energy behemoth. Well apparently my job is to look at it the other way. Someone fucking has to.

Was it a bad idea to leave kids alone with a space heater? Absolutely. But I'm trying to imagine being in that mother's shoes. Not even for a whole mile, just a fucking inch. Can we handle that? Her house is freezing and it's only gonna get colder when it gets dark. It's fucking freezing. People die this time of year with no heat. She's got little children. A handyman (I'm guessing at the landlord's behest but I could be wrong) brings her a gas space heater - maybe she doesn't know better, maybe she knows it's bad but it's still better than nothing, either way - it's not enough for this drafty old house, she needs another one. What is she supposed to do? You don't know what her situation is. You don't know what her support network is. You don't know her.

Her kids are DEAD. Because of a much bigger problem of poverty and desperation. A bad choice on her part? Yes. Systematic injustice from the entities powerful enough to turn this picture around? HELL YES.

If you want to judge HER so much go right ahead. If you want to judge this poor devastated mother you go right fucking ahead.

You may read this post and see hyperbole, or exaggeration, you may see one woman and one situation in this story and think it's ridiculous that i'm expanding it's meaning, but in doing so you are supporting the status quo, the system of injustice that allows this to happen.

No one in a civilized society should freeze to death, not while energy execs and investors are raking in billions in profits. Until we can step back, connect the dots, see the big picture, we'll never make any progress.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

49. The People Who Turned Off The Electric Will Be Judged Like All Of Us.

I am sad that any DU member would defend them.

God bless
Brian

[Cal Carpenter]

53. I appreciate your sentiment

Thanks Brian

[Name removed]

70. Deleted message

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[DemocratSinceBirth]

71. Thank You For Disrespecting Me Without Provocation

I still love you.

[Name removed]

74. Deleted message

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[DemocratSinceBirth]

75. You Mean Like Dr. King, Bishop Tutu, And Mother Tersea

~

[Name removed]

78. Deleted message

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[Name removed]

82. Deleted message

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[dysfunctional press]

89. i am sad that there are theists among us.

oh, well...that's life. :shrug:

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

105. Judged for what?

[knitter4democracy]

56. It's pretty common here for gas and electric to be included.

Not everywhere, mind you, but given the huge number of rentals on the market because houses aren't selling, more landlords are putting gas and electric in the rent to get people to live there.

[Name removed]

65. Deleted message

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[dysfunctional press]

68. it sounds like the LANDLORD is the guilty party, NOT dte.

[Gormy Cuss]

76. Thank you for those links.

The WSWS site has an article quoting the mother as saying she plead with the DTE worker who came to shut off the utilities and that he observed children there when they were talking. If that's true, DTE is partially responsible for those deaths (as is the landlord.)
http://wsws.org/articles/2010/mar2010/sylv-m06.shtml

[bighart]

126. Problem I see is if there had been a fire caused by an illegal connection

that DTE knew was there and they did nothing about it they would be responsible as well.

[butterfly77]

52. K&R!!!

[earth mom]

54. It should be illegal for power companies to shut off power in the winter!!!

:cry:

[Cal Carpenter]

55. Exactly

it's that simple.

No matter what the details are - the reality is that at some point the power was shut off by the energy company. Whether or not it was the fault of this mother, the previous tenant, or the landlord, it must have happened or the illegal connection would never have been hooked up.

No landlord is going to let the energy get shut off between tenants during a Michigan winter. The landlord knew what was happening.

I had a series of apartments from my mid 20s to my mid 30s. In almost every single one, I had to set up an account for the energy. But it was already on when I got there. The bill would be based on my move-in date. I have NEVER had a place with no energy when I moved in, that got turned off when someone moved out and there was a lag between tenants.

I think there may even be a special type of billing for rentals that covers this. (I could be wrong on that)

But the fact that so many are so quick to blame the mother for this tragedy is exactly why such tragedies happen.

Whose side are we on?

[blindpig]

59. Good question. What an ugly fuckin' thread.

It's all 'personal responsibility' but it seems there is no social responsibility.

Where is the solidarity?

[Name removed]

62. Deleted message

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[Moosepoop]

95. "I think there may even be a special type of billing for rentals that covers this."

You may be right. That's exactly how it is with our local, city-owned electric company. Even if the electricity is not included in the rent, and the tenant must acquire their own account and pay for it, the landlord still maintains a sort of "stand-by" account that the service is automatically switched back to if the tenant cancels service or loses it through non-payment. I'm in Michigan, and that's how landlords here keep their pipes from freezing when a tenant skips out without notification in the winter months. The natural gas company in this area is a larger regional one, but they have the same setup. I can't say what the scenario was for this incident, but I'm really wondering if it wasn't the landlord who had the services illegally rigged.

[Fire_Medic_Dave]

106. If the power had been legally turned on by the occupant it wouldn't have been turned off.

[knitter4democracy]

57. I'd say I'm surprised, but I'm not. Consumers is almost as bad, too.

Not quite as bad, but they've cut too many off during this winter, too.

We've had a lot of wretchedly cold days this winter--shutting off the heat and/or electricity in our winters up here kills.

[Urban Prairie]

58. DTE shut us off exactly a year ago.

We moved into a condo and were renting it by the month. Apparently the previous tenants had illegally bypassed the utility box and used the electricity for 6 months w/o paying. We were of course unaware of this, when in the middle of the day, the electricity shut off. I looked outside to check to see if my neighbors had also lost power, but I spotted a DTE van about to leave our complex. I yelled to him that our power was shut off, and he replied that we were illegally connected, and we would have to contact DTE to have our power restored.

When we called DTE, the service rep said that our condo was locked out, the address was placed in their updated crime files, and they would not let us pay our monthly bill w/o showing up in person at a local office and paying for the electricity that had been illegally used, that is, AFTER we signed a statement taking full responsibility for stealing power.

It took us almost a month to get it straightened out with the company who we were renting from, who eventually paid for the electricity use, but at least our neighbor agreed to let us run an extension cord to his condo below us so that we could keep a light on and the refrigerator running. We could not use the electric stove to cook, only the microwave, and the furnace would not electronically start to operate, so it got quite cold of course.

What I still don't understand is how we lived here for about a year prior to the utility catching onto the illegal hookup. When we moved in the power was already on, so maybe I should have figured out that there was something wrong, but I assumed that the company that we were renting from was paying for it, while no one was living there.

[Cal Carpenter]

60. Wow, thanks for your story

That's the basic scenario I am picturing in this story too..

It may or may not be similar to what happened to the people in the story here, but it sure confirms that it can and does happen that way.

Really sucks that you had to deal with that...

[Name removed]

66. Deleted message

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[dysfunctional press]

67. Murdered...? PUH-LEASE...sensationalist bullshit much...?

i didn't realize that utilities were supposed to be free-of-charge. :eyes:

[DemocratSinceBirth]

79. What If They Were Literally Unable To Pay?

A civilized society doesn't allow its members to freeze to death.

[dysfunctional press]

80. apparently they do.

if they were literally unable to pay, they should have moved in with someone who could. with all those churches out there in this country, there must have been thousands upon thousands of good christians willing to take them in for free, no questions asked. all they'd have to do is go door-to-door, and in less than 4 or 5 houses, they'd surely find a christian answering. and no REAL christian would EVER turn them away...right?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

83. I See

Are you arguing that private citizens should offer social services in lieu of the government?

[dysfunctional press]

84. only those supposed 'christians' who would like to practice what they preach...

but not the hypocritical ones who would shut the door on the woman's face, or refuse her and her children refuge in their hour of need.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

85. Ever Hear Of The Salvation Army?

World Vision?

Red Cross?

[Name removed]

87. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

88. I Have No Truck For Anybody That Discriminates

I was just pointing out Christian charities like the Red Cross.

[dysfunctional press]

90. if the salvation army is an example of a christian charity...

then it's a very good reflection of just what kind of people consider themselves 'christian'...:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[DemocratSinceBirth]

92. Here's A List Of Their Services. Which One Do You Dislike?

Disaster Relief
Prisoner Rehabilitation
Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation
Music
Missing Persons
Recreation
Community Care Ministries
Youth Camps
Adult Rehabilitation
Combating Human Trafficking
Christmas Charity
Elderly Services
Christmas Charity

[dysfunctional press]

100. the ones that discriminate against gays.

iow- ALL of them.
:eyes:

[DemocratSinceBirth]

110. Which Of Those Service Do You Provide To Your Fellow Man And Woman And How?

~

[dysfunctional press]

112. not my job.

how about you?

[DemocratSinceBirth]

114. I Mentor At Risk Kids And Volunteer At An Assisted Living Facility

~

[dysfunctional press]

91. then why are you holding the red cross up as an example...?

:shrug:

http://media.www.harbus.org/media/storage/paper343/news/2002/01/28/NewsCampusAffairs/American.Red.Cross.Dogged.By.Allegations.Of.Discrimination-171199.shtml

American Red Cross Dogged by Allegations of Discrimination
blood donor guidelines unreasonably discriminate against gay men and Africans

[DemocratSinceBirth]

93. I Think The Blood Donor Guidelines Are Set By The FDA

You need to petition Congress.

[dysfunctional press]

101. you generally think wrong.

but then- that's pretty much obvious...what with the cross your avatar and all.

"christians"...:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: where oh where would i get my daily laughs without them...? :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[DemocratSinceBirth]

109. Was That Most Famous Of Christians, Dr. King A Joke?

How about Bobby Kennedy?

Ted Kennedy?

Dorothy Day?

John Brown?

[dysfunctional press]

111. when it comes to a belief in a supremme being- YES.

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: see?

[roamer65]

69. DTE only cares about one thing...harassing you to pay your bill.

I once called to report a suspected gas leak. By law, they are supposed to show up to investigate the report. They did not show up at all.

[Matariki]

72. "Three babies die in DTE-shutoff fire" ... I'm confused

They died in a fire and the fire was caused by the electricity and gas being shut off? They didn't freeze to death?

[Matariki]

73. Can someone explain this?

"They were killed when fire roared through their west side home Tuesday night."

I really don't get the connection between the power shut-off and the fire that killed the children.

[Name removed]

77. Deleted message

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[Fire_Medic_Dave]

107. See it's not as much fun when you actually get the facts.

Instead try posting rants about things you think happened, it's a lot more fun that way.

[Matariki]

86. How was the fire that killed the kids the DTE's fault?

And how were they running a space heater if the electricity was turned off?

That article is rather vague on what happened.

[omega minimo]

94. could someone explain the "left ten children" part?

[ohheckyeah]

98. Excuse me?

Scott Simons, a spokesman for DTE Energy, remarked, “Generally, our theft guys will knock on the door before turning off service. We want to turn them into paying customers and leave them with information that tells them how to go about doing that.”

Shouldn't the DTE guy have checked to see if anyone was in the house, especially children? The heroes of the situation are the teenage boys who saved some of the children by having them jump into their arms from a second story window.

This is a horrible tragedy. Instead of defending themselves, DTE needs to put procedures in place to make sure they aren't cutting off utilities to a home with defenseless people in them.

[Xenotime]

113. This is a perfect example where more regulation and laws are needed.

[piratefish08]

115. Those hideous poor people stealing electricity. And just to survive, of all things.

They should have signed a lease, turned on legal power and settled down in front of their big screen tv where nobody ever freezes to death, right?


:shrug:


Regardless of the circumstances, they were simply trying to survive, in a country that is being stolen out from underneath us. Where is the compassion?

[berni_mccoy]

119. Sad. But thousands of children die every year because their healthcare is cut-off

Be it because of a pre-existing condition or their parents can no longer afford health care. This is why we need to finish HCR.

[joeybee12]

124. Wasn't there an elderly gentleman who lived alone, and had his

power cut off and froze to death? This was last winter. If it wasn't Detroit, it was somewhere in Michigan.

[Cal Carpenter]

130. I think that was up in Alpena

Or that area, and the worst part is it was the town's 'public' utility company, not DTE.

It's unconscionable, imo.