Several residents of a Boston apartment building, among them elderly and disabled individuals, said they have been stranded in their residences for nearly two weeks after the building’s only elevator broke down.
Building management later posted a notice that said, “The elevator in your building will be out of service until further notice” according topublic broadcaster WGBH.
Now, some residents who rely on the elevator to leave the building, which is part of the Ruth Lillian Barkley Apartments complex, are having a difficult time doing so altogether.
An expedited order has been placed, but the part in question is being “delivered from the West Coast,” according to the BHA, which hopes final repairs will begin “in the coming days.”
“We recognize that elevator disruptions are highly frustrating for residents, and share their frustration as their welfare is our top priority,” the BHA said in its statement.
The BHA did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
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“I’m trapped. I can’t even check my mail, it’s in another building,” Burres told WGBH. “You can’t call to get something. You can’t order anything because no one’s going to bring it up to the fifth floor.”
Montes, who has spina bifida, said she has avoided leaving the building “because I’m afraid that once I’m downstairs, I won’t be able to go back up” to her home on the fifth floor.
“It really needs to stop, because I’m sick and tired of this abuse. And that’s exactly what it is — it’s abuse,” Montes said, per NBC10.
Sometimes, the elevator has stopped working while people are inside, Burres recently told WGBH.
“The worst is when the children get trapped, they don’t understand,” Burres explained, “They’re in the elevator screaming. Some of them don’t like to get on the elevator.”
source: people.com
