ALAMOGORDO, N.M. — People living in a New Mexico White Sands Manufactured Home and RV Community are back to square one. New Mexico Gas Company shut down access to natural gas this week after discovering multiple leaks. 

It’s a story 4 Investigates told you about in 2024, when the same park didn’t have access to natural gas from April to late October. It took the out-of-state owner six months to make the repairs. 

While reps with NMGCO said the repairs were made, residents say “here we go again.”

White Sands is home for Perla Munoz. She owns her own house but pays rent for a lot in her longtime mobile home community. These days, she said that plot is bringing her more headaches than happiness.

“I got up in the morning and I said, ‘Wow, it’s cold in here,'” said Munoz. 

This week, she discovered gas shut off inside her mobile home.

“Now, she can’t cook, has no hot water,” said her son Thomas Munoz.

It’s a familiar reality Perla and her son Thomas thought was finally behind them. Gas at White Sands was shut off for six months in 2024.

Elderly residents like Munoz had to buy electric cook tops and take cold showers, some of her neighbors struggled to get around.

“I used to bathe her in her living room, I would heat up water and wash her hair,” said Munoz about her time spent bathing a neighbor who didn’t have any other options.

“Since then, Brittany, the lady unfortunately passed away, right,” said Thomas. “So, from the time of March to the time she passed away in late October, she never had a hot shower ever again.”

The gas was restored to the park in late October after our state’s Department of Justice got involved, ordering the park owner to make repairs. It’s all in a signed contract called an “Assurance of Discontinuance.”

A spokesperson for the New Mexico Gas Company said they discovered more leaks Monday evening, forcing them to shut the utility off until repairs are made.

In the dead of winter, Munoz feels stuck in a much worse place than before.

KOB 4 reached out to the park owners. Noone with Western Management, LLC returned our calls.

Resident question whether repairs were done correctly the first time around.

New Mexico Gas Company officials said it requires the property manager to submit a certification that things were repaired and tested, which they said was done for them to turn things back on:

• As you know, we restored natural gas service to the White Sands community in October (following several months where the master meter had been turned off) after the property manager provided certification that the master meter system had been repaired and tested. 
• On Monday, December 30, we returned to the White Sands community after receiving a report from a resident about a possible gas leak. 
• We spent time that evening with a White Sands representative, who accompanied our team as we circulated around the property and checked for leaks. Multiple leaks were identified. 
• Later in the evening, as a precaution for the safety of residents, we decided to shut down the master meter based on the levels of gas that were detected. 
• Additional repairs will be required by the owner of the mobile home park, who is also the owner of the gas distribution system within the park. Until the system is recertified, we cannot restore gas service to the master meter.

As for the Assurance of Discontinuous, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice said they are investigating the situation to find out if the property owner violated the agreement. A spokesperson said it depends on whether the leaks are the result of a faulty repair, or if it’s a new issue.