AUSTIN, Texas — An Austin contractor hired to treat a woman's house for bugs ended up saving her life.
Unfortunate events, when you're in the thick of it, it's hard to see the positive.
"I used Raid and permeated my bedroom, thinking the ceiling fan, window crack and AC would be enough," said Maria Solis.
But it wasn't. Solis couldn't bear the smell and felt sick.
The next day, the 67-year-old went to the ER for what she thought was pesticide poisoning from the bug spray.
"It is this putrid, very sweet smell, very sweet," said Solis. "When I went to the emergency room I begged them to pull my mask under my nose because everything was permeated."
After four days and still no relief, Chem-Free Pest Control arrived at Solis' South Central home to get rid of her pest issue but discovered a more dangerous problem.
"As soon as I walked in the house, I immediately recognized that smell as gas and immediately realized the pilot light was out and one was off," said Chem-Free Pest Control service sanager John Howie.
Howie jumped into action and turned off the gas leak coming from her stove, which she had almost two decades. It was pulled into her yard by the gas company after they confirmed the leak later that day.
"I don't use it very much," said Solis. "I wouldn't have noticed and we could have exploded at any time because I had used my cellphone in the kitchen the night before, had lights on, had ceiling fans on."
Sometimes, it takes a series of unfortunate events and someone willing to go the extra mile to save a life.
"It makes me cry, very scary," Solis said as tears rolled down her eyes. "Thank you for going above and beyond."
Here are some signs of a gas leak
- Some gas may smell like sulfur or rotten eggs but not all.
- A hissing noise of gas escaping a line
- You might have a headache, dizziness or nausea.
- If you have a gas leak, get to a safe location away from the leak and call 911
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