Dormont Business Owner Frustrated By Frozen Pipes

DORMONT (KDKA) -- Greg Cherico says he's not sure what to do next to get the water back on in his Dormont bridal shop.

Eight days ago was the last time he had running water.

Cherico says after he called Pennsylvania American Water Company, crews told him they'd need to bring a welder in to fix the issue.

He was told it would be done that day, but no one's been back since and dozens of calls later, Cherico says he can't get the issue fixed.

"Things happen and I totally understand that but when you're calling you water company and every phone call from every person is a different story," Cherico said. "Eight days without running water. I could see if there was a hurricane or if we had a major disaster, but what's the problem?"

Cherico even paid a plumber to come in, but was told only the water company could fix the frozen pipes because they're outside of the building. It's created quite an issue, not only for brides, but also for Anne Gregory's staff who've been using bottled water to wash their hands and going across the street to use the bathroom.

"We are a couture bridal salon and when you have to send your client away because they can't wash their hands or flush a toilet it's embarrassing, it's frustrating," Cherico said.

Pennsylvania American Water Company said that the number of service calls skyrocketed during last week's deep freeze and that "non-emergency" issues got pushed to the bottom of the list.

A spokeswomen from Pennsylvania American Water Company says that once the shop reopens, they'll fix the problem.

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