Seniors At Van Nuys Apartment Building Without A/C For Days During Heat Wave
VAN NUYS (CBSLA.com) — Residents in the San Fernando Valley faced record temperatures hovering in the triple digits this past weekend.
But as KNX 1070's Margaret Carrero reports, seniors living in one apartment building along Sherman Way in Van Nuys have been suffering through their own heat wave over the last 11 days.
Wayne Price lives on the eighth floor of Fickett Towers, a 12-story building with residents ranging in age from their 60s to their 90s, and he says life has been pretty miserable since the building's AC unit went out.
"For me, it's been 93 degrees," said Price. "I have temperature gauges, I try to cool it off with a couple of fans that they didn't want us to have at one time."
The building's management had set up fans blowing in the lobby with the doors open, but residents say there's no way to cool down when those fans are blowing warm air.
Another 67-year-old resident with leukemia who lives on the fifth floor of Fickett Towers was seen sitting in the shade with her head covered in a wet towel.
"I have no fan, I have a fan that doesn't work," she said. "I cannot sleep, I cannot do anything."
Carrero reported two repairmen were seen at Fickett Towers when she arrived Monday, but it wasn't immediately clear whether the AC unit would be repaired or completely replaced.
A manager on duty declined to comment.
According to Price, waiting more than a week to get the air conditioning fixed amid one of the hottest weekends of the year is unacceptable.
"I think within 72 hours any repairs should be done," he said.
There was no immediate response to a request for comment from the building's owner.
Record highs were set in five Los Angeles County locales on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service, including in Burbank, where 102-degree heat topped a record 100 degrees set in 1992 and 2000.
