AKRON, Ohio — In Akron, some residents have grown frustrated with how long it's taken First Energy to repair streetlights in their neighborhoods. In one area, a single streetlight was out for five years. But after staying on top of the story, we're learning there's finally been progress.
“We had forgotten what it was like to have all the lights on or most of the lights in the neighborhood working, and it's just, it's really good. They finally got it done," said Wade Johnson, an Akron resident.
We first met Johnson back in April when he showed News 5 several streetlights in his neighborhood that hadn’t worked in years.
“It would get really dark in this neighborhood, especially this time of the year, with all the trees growing,” said Johnson.
To get the lights fixed, Wade and his neighbors in the Riverwoods community called First Energy more than a dozen times with no results.
“Given that it took them two maybe three hours to fix it when they finally did, that just seems excessive for it to take five years and multiple trips out here to investigate,” said Johnson.
Johnson isn't the only one frustrated. Across Akron, Councilmember Phil Lombardo has taken it upon himself to tie ribbons on lights needing repair.
"I just tie it around with a nice knot, and that lets first energy know that this light needs to be repaired," said Lombardo.
Though this light is finally working. Johnson says it’s just one of many that still need power.
“You can see from there all the way up to here. This whole corner here is dark. There's nothing on this side of the street,” said Johnson.
With the neighborhood located just off the Towpath Trail, residents say the lack of lighting raises real safety concerns.
“There's stuff that goes on, and having those lights, I think, helps deter it,” said Johnson.
News 5 reached out to First Energy regarding remaining outages, and they responded with the following statement:
“At Ohio Edison, the safety and well-being of our customers are always our top priorities. We understand how important streetlights are to the safety and security of our communities.
Our crews recently completed underground work to restore power to streetlights in the Riverwoods drive area. We are investigating what caused five streetlights to go dark again and what additional repairs may be needed. Our teams are working diligently to resolve the issue as quickly and safely as possible,” The statement read.
Still, Johnson is grateful for the progress and hopeful for more.
“Just fix the stuff in a timely manner. You know, i get if it takes even a couple months, but five years is just ridiculous,” said Johnson.
If you notice a streetlight out, contact FirstEnergy and be sure to have the following information ready: your name and phone number, the location of the pole, the pole number (usually marked on the pole), and a description of the issue.
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