FORT WORTH, Texas – One month after a six-alarm fire damaged some apartments at a Fort Worth apartment complex, residents in a separate building that was not damaged say they need answers now.
What we know:
Some of the fed-up residents at the Cooper Apartments took matters into their own hands.
Residents that were furious with the lack of communication made their way past security here and started dropping their belongings from their balcony.
One month after a fire caused damage to 24 of the 390 units at the cooper apartments, Lauren Garcia is still waiting to find out when she can go into her unit in the building was not damaged.
Residents speak out
What they’re saying:
“My unit was unaffected. No fire, no water damage. I don’t understand why I’m not able to enter,” said Garcia. “They are locking me out of my home.”
Garcia says the stress of living in limbo with no timeline is taking a toll on her life.
“I lost my job as a result of this, financial loss all around,” she said. “I’m furious, angry, heartbroken, some days I want to scream and cry.”
Dig deeper:
The Fort Worth Fire Department turned control of the building back over to the owner shortly after the fire.
Meaning the city determined the building was not at risk of collapsing.
“We are not getting any correspondence other than we’ll let you know when we know, that is unacceptable,” said resident Antonio Busby.
FOX 4 asked the Fort Worth mayor for a statement.
Her office only provided the information about assistance being offered by the U.S. small business administration.
That is little consolation to these residents.
“It’s almost like if you take the loan worse situation. I already have a bed, couch, tables, utensils, pots and pans and don’t want a loan to double up. If they let me back in now, I have two sets. It doesn’t make any sense,” said Busby.
Complex response
What’s next:
The Cooper Apartments management team told FOX 4 in a statement:
“We are pleased to share that, after considerable effort, we can now begin reaching out to each resident individually to discuss next steps. That process will begin on Monday, but given the sheer size of our community, it will take some time to complete.”
Residents say it is too little too late.
The Source: Information in this article was provided from interviews conducted by FOX 4’s Lori Brown. Additional information was provided by Cooper Apartments.
HousingFort WorthTarrant County