HOUSTON — A photo of a Houston man standing inside a big hole went viral, leading to quick action by the City of Houston.
The three-feet deep hole was in the middle of Tuam Street near Brailsfort in the Third Ward.
“And it was huge and I could clearly tell it was dangerous,” Ed Pettitt said. “There was nothing blocking it or alerting people that it was there.”
Residents have gotten stuck after driving over the hole.
"When I come through my front end hit first. Then my back hit, back in there," Ronald Emmanuel said. "My neighbors had to help me out."
Pettitt called 311 and then posted the picture of him in the hole on Facebook Saturday, tagging Houston Public Works.
“When I stood in the hole, it was almost up to my waist, and I’m 6-foot-1, so it was a pretty deep hole.”
The post went viral and the city sent a crew to fill in the hole with dirt.
“It’s unfortunate, but if you want to get the city’s attention, sometimes you have to be a little bit theatrical and post on social media," Pettitt said.
He shared the before and after photos with us.
The city crews were back on Wednesday to put a metal plate over it.
Pettitt said his suspicion that private developers were to blame was confirmed by Public Works. They said it looked like an illegal road cut for a water connection that wasn’t sealed properly or wasn’t done properly.
Public Works said they cited the contractors called We Escavate Texas. Now, residents want to know who is going to pay for the damage to their cars.
This wasn't the first time Pettit stood inside a big hole to get the city's attention. He said a Third Ward pastor called him a couple of years ago about a hole in front of his church. The city fixed that one too after seeing the photo.
Pettitt said he's studying urban planning at TSU and is vice president of the Third Ward Super Neighborhood so he keeps a close eye out for issues that need addressing.
“I’m always riding around the neighborhood on my bike, on my scooter checking up on development sites and looking for illegal dumping sites."
Now Pettitt is hoping public works and city leaders will also take action regarding giant power poles going up in some neighborhoods.