Жительница Вилмингтон-Айленд подала иск к Georgia Power из-за повреждения септической системы при замене линий электропередач

WILMINGTON ISLAND, Ga. (WTOC) - [UPDATE 09/09/26 AT 2:47 p.m.] Georgia Power says it has not been served with the lawsuit and cannot comment on it. A company spokesperson provided the following information to WTOC: “Currently, Georgia Power is replacing an aging underground distribution line in a neighborhood on Wilmington Island. The line has reached the end of its operational life. This is a vital project that will ensure we can continue to provide power to the neighborhood this line serves for many years to come. During this project, the work has been done within Chatham County’s designated right-of-way.” “We understand customers’ frustrations with the work underway now. We have actively engaged with impacted customers and strived to minimize disruptions during this project, including rerouting the line from its original route at cost to the company. As we do with every project in Savannah, and statewide, Georgia Power provides robust communications to customers impacted by improvement projects like this one, including notices on their digital pay account, physical mailers, and in-person meetings,” the spokesperson said. [UPDATE 09/08/26 AT 10:30 A.M.] Accardi said her court appearance scheduled for Tuesday was postponed until a judge can approve a pauper’s affidavit, a legal document that waives court fees due to income limitations. [ORIGINAL STORY] A terminally ill Chatham County homeowner is taking Georgia Power to court, claiming a massive utility project damaged her property and proceeded without legal authorization. Catalina Accardi, a Wilmington Island resident, filed an emergency motion for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) and declaratory judgment in the Superior Court of Chatham County on Sept. 1. Accardi is asking a judge to halt all physical construction, remove newly installed wiring and prohibit further work by Georgia Power on her property pending a judicial review of the utility’s property rights. According to court documents filed by Accardi, the legal dispute began in July when she first noticed utility crews spray painting and preparing for an underground conversion project on her land. Accardi claimed she repeatedly showed documentation proving the work was occurring on her private property, but crews disregarded her warnings. Accardi said Georgia Power failed to come up with a resolution to fix her property damages. On Sept. 3, she filed the lawsuit in Superior Court. The suit alleges Georgia Power proceeded with the work without completing a promised professional boundary survey. Furthermore, Accardi claimed she has an audio recording of a utility employee admitting that Georgia Power never surveyed the property lines before construction commenced. The physical impact of the work also left Accardi facing massive potential expenses. In her motion, she alleged that crews drove physical stakes directly into her yard, damaging her permitted septic absorption field. Replacing or repairing the subsurface system could cost anywhere from $15,000 to $40,000, depending on the complexity of the repairs. “Without taking into account what the underground infrastructure was there, even after being informed, given the permit, given the septic and everything else, they continued to stake across it,” Accardi said. In her court filings, Accardi contended that the lawsuit is not about recovering money, but rather protecting her home and forcing the utility to repair what was broken. She is seeking a judicial determination to establish on paper that the disputed grounds are private property. “So I filed that declaratory judgment... to be determined that these are without a doubt on paper judicially private properties,” Accardi said. Accardi and Georgia Power are expected to make their first court appearance Tuesday.