I have never heard or seen a water heater freeze when in daily use. That only happens in places with below freezing for days or weeks and a loss of power or nat

I have never heard or seen a water heater freeze when in daily use. That only happens in places with below freezing for days or weeks and a loss of power or natural gas or whatever powers the hot water heater. So either the pilot light or power went out for hours / days without anyone noticing? It takes a very long time to freeze 20-40 gallons of water inside an insulated container. I’m empathetic to your situation but it doesn’t make any sense. Unless intentional disregard.