Slow cleanup after pipe burst frustrates Naples apartment residents

NAPLES, Fla.- Residents in one apartment complex are furious. They say after a pipe burst over the weekend, flooding their homes, the management company hasn’t done enough to clean up the mess.

Residents say the smell is terrible and are fearful mold is now a problem.

With water coming from the air vents and the walls, the apartments at the Windsong Club were flooded out over the weekend.

“The smell and the mold and everything.”

Four days later, the residents say the water has stopped flowing from the pipe that burst but not much has been done to repair the damage left behind.

“It’s just about money, they don’t want to spend money, and the only one thing they have to do is change the carpets in the house. That’s all,” said one tenant who didn’t want to show her face on camera.

She says the management company did provide fans to dry out the carpet, but it’s still wet and the odor is unbearable.

The worst part she says, is she has no choice other than to continue to live here with her kids.

“I don’t have no where else to go. I’m staying here.”

Jeffrey Janeiro is a local real estate attorney. He says depending on the lease, the management company may not be required to find additional housing for the tenants, but he does say residents have some options.

“There may be the possibility for those tenants to sue the landlord, for damages,” said Janeiro.

He also says they may be able to terminate their lease and find a new place to live.