News

Actions

Broken boiler relocates Richmonders

Posted at 7:18 PM, Jan 31, 2013
and last updated 2013-01-31 19:18:41-05

(WTVR) - Imagine being told you have to pack up your bags and leave your home with little to no notice at all.

That's what people who live in Fairfield Court say happened to them Thursday.

It seems a broken boiler is at the center of the sudden relocation.

The housing authority said it is paying to relocate some ten affected families and says the move in only temporary.

People who live in Fairfield Court got notices last night, they had to move by 8 a.m. Thursday, into new housing.

But several residents say the boiler's been broken since November and they've been without heat ever since.

Osita Iroegbu with the RRHA said the problem only recently got worse and with cold weather coming, they had no choice but to make residents relocate for their safety.

"We cannot allow any families to reside in our housing without any heat." said Iroegbu.

But Jakela Cannon who has lived in her neighborhood for seven years said the boiler has been broken for months and she doesn't understand the sudden move.

"I'm not going to Hillside court, I can't do it, Cannon continued, "I have no explanation as to why."