Some customers of the utility Aqua Texas in the Houston area are being hit with staggering water bills that run into the thousands of dollars, according to FOX 26 Houston. The cases have sparked disputes over leaks and meter readings, and in at least one instance prompted a stranger to step in and offer help.
The station first reported on a woman who received a water bill of about 2,400 dollars from Aqua Texas. According to FOX 26, she and her son used 97,200 gallons of water in a three-bedroom, two-bath mobile home during the month of July, at a total cost of 2,327 dollars and 27 cents.
To put that usage in perspective, the station noted that 97,200 gallons is roughly equivalent to five average backyard swimming pools, more than 2,400 standard bathtubs, or about 736,000 water bottles. The station remarked that it seemed almost impossible for a single household to use that much water in one month.
After the woman's story aired, a fellow FOX 26 viewer stepped in to help her. The viewer said she had prayed to God about the situation and that he had answered her and wanted her to help, telling the woman she would assist her and describing the gesture as a gift from God.
Her case was not the only one. Aqua Texas said another customer, Belinda Spurl, and her husband used 209,000 gallons of water in June, at a cost of around 5,000 dollars, with the usage recorded over just two separate days, the station reported.
Aqua Texas attributed that bill to a leak, and the customer said a main water line had been broken behind her house. She said the utility is now telling her the household is using 15,000 gallons a day, even though she has already sold the home and the new owners were hit with a large bill as well. She added that she had sent the station a video showing the meter was not even running.
FOX 26 said it reached out to Aqua Texas for comment, and that the company's full statement, along with previous reports on the billing issue, is available on the station's website. For now, the affected customers are left disputing usage figures that they say they cannot explain.