FRISCO, Texas — The Peebles and Lee families are next-door neighbors and first-time homeowners in Frisco. Lately, both families, who live along Coneflower Drive, have had to learn a very hard lesson about home ownership: liability.
"It was a new build when we moved in. We couldn't be happier until recently," said Kylie Peebles, who moved into the new neighborhood with her husband Jamie in January of 2021.
On Aug. 12, Samantha Lee and her husband had heard a loud "boom." The noise came from outside behind their home. The source of the noise was very noticeable as water was "exploding up" several feet into the air.
"It looked like a little river outside our backyard. It was just currents flowing," said Lee.
A pipe had burst on city property behind the Lee and Peebles homes. Kylie's husband, Jamie, tells WFAA that contractors had been working in the area for months and recently was tapping into the main water line for irrigation of plants along a walking path.
It took the City of Frisco two hours to turn off the gushing water. The families shared videos with WFAA show heavy flows of water coming from their backyards streaming to the front of their homes. The result is water entering inside the Lee home and water damage to the outside of the Peebles home. Altogether, three homes were affected by the busted water line.
"Clearly to me it's not that hard to figure out. This is their fault...you guys did this," said Jamie Peebles.
The Lees haven't had their master bedroom or bathroom for more than a month. The busted pipe has forced them to replace portions of their master bedroom walls and completely replace the carpet. Lee told WFAA the carpet was "soaked." The families had reached out to the city of Frisco with the expectation that the damages would be covered. They were wrong.
The city reached out to the Texas Municipal League Intergovernmental Risk Pool (TMLIRP), which handles these sorts of claims. Within weeks, the families learned their claims for damages were "denied."
"'I'm so sorry.' That's what we got basically," Lee said.
According to the families, a representative with TMLIRP shared with the families an immunity claim cited under Section 101 of the Tort Liability that essentially reads the damage wasn’t directly caused by a city employee using "motorized equipment" and so the city was not liable for damages.
“We understand our residents’ frustrations. Any water damage to anyone’s property is unfortunate. Given the circumstances, we’re going to ask TML to take another look at the situation,” Mayor Jeff Cheney said.
"For me it was obvious they needed to be responsible for this," said Kylie Peebles.
Both families said they are very concerned about their foundation. Sediment has settled into their backyards. There are major gaps underneath the fence line and there are parts of the yard that need re-sodding. Last week, the Lees installed new carpet and so far, all expenses have been out-of-pocket.