HENDERSON (KTNV) — A Henderson man claims a recent gas line replacement in his neighborhood led to a big mess and a tree falling over, causing major damage to his property.
"I just bought this house about two years ago and I'm trying to fix everything up, and now I'm starting over with a huge bill," said Alan Vanderploeg.
Vanderploeg says the trouble started around mid August when Southwest Gas and their contractor, NPL, were in his neighborhood near Water Street and Lake Mead Parkway to replace gas lines.
"So they trimmed everything and when they came through there used to be a large tree that sat right here, and they trimmed all the roots -- all the way through. And probably two weeks later we got a wind storm. And since the roots were cut, that thing fell over and came through my wall and landed on my truck. And almost went through the side of my home," explained Vanderploeg.
The damage to his side, cinder block wall is extensive.
His Toyota SUV will need repairs to the doors and roof.
Estimates provided to 13 Investigates put the repairs around $7,500.
So far, Vanderploeg says he has contacted Southwest Gas to try and get the issue resolved.
"It's amazing, I would not have thought that it would've been such a problem. This is a public entity, we have no other choice but to use Southwest Gas," said Vanderploeg.
13 Investigates reached out to Southwest Gas and a spokesperson says their contractor, NPL, would be the entity to handle any damage claims.
13 Investigates contacted NPL's corporate office in Arizona and a spokesperson there says they are looking into the matter and will have additional information at a later time.
In the mean time, legal experts suggest if you find yourself in a similar situation that you document everything with pictures and video.
Any written correspondence should also be kept, including text messages, if you should need to explain your side of things in court.
Vanderploeg says he was dealing with an insurance company that denied his claim and he is currently looking into his legal options.
