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Families still unable to move home after fire allegedly caused by Charter Cable installer

Posted at 11:30 PM, Aug 28, 2014
and last updated 2014-08-29 06:30:55-04

Suffolk, Va. - Stephanie Bowden has been without a home for a week, after a botched job by the cable company sparked a fire, damaging her home.

Last Wednesday, a cable employee came out to the South Broad Street home in Suffolk. He hit a power line, a mishap that sparked a fire.

"Charter cable company they, they responsible for this and we been calling them, leaving numbers, really trying to get in contact with the corporation," Bowden said. "We haven't had no luck at all."

Three families lived in the apartment building. Bowden is lucky, she's staying with her sister.

Another woman, Denise, called NewsChannel 3 saying she's been living in her car. The Red Cross put everyone up for three days.

Days are long for Bowden and Denise feeling like they're getting the runaround.

"All we can do is take your name and number or 'we'll get right back to you,'" Bowden said. "We haven't heard anything. Nothing."

NewsChannel 3 talked to the landlord, who says the family of three who lived upstairs is being taken care of by Charter Cable.

The damage to the home is almost exclusively to the top floor. The other two units were fine once the power was restored.

"He thinks it's another week," Bowden said. "You can see they haven't started no type of electricity at all. It's very frustrating."

This Taking Action story has a happy ending, at least for one of the displaced individuals.

NewsChannel got in contact with Charter Cable.  Charter Cable says they were unaware that one of the people affected by the fire was living in her car.

NewsChannel 3 gave the company her contact info and within a couple hours they found a hotel for her in Suffolk. As for Stephanie Bowden, she is still staying with family.