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Some Austin residents still without hot water weeks after storm hit
That includes 62-year-old veteran Phillip Hooker, who says he was without water for over a week, and he has now been without hot water for 18 days.
AUSTIN, Texas - It’s now been almost three weeks since the winter storms hit, and some people in Austin still do not have hot water.
That includes Westdale Parke resident and 62-year-old veteran Phillip Hooker, who says he was without water for over a week, and he has now been without hot water for 18 days.
"This old body can’t take cold water in the wintertime," said Hooker. "Every now and then I heat up water on the stove and take it to the bathtub and wash, but I’m limited on the amount of weight I can carry."
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It’s a similar story for Shelly Juul at the Palo Verde Apartments. "On my floor we had a waterline burst," she said. "It completely flooded and dispersed a couple on the main floor."
That was during the heat - cold, rather - of things, but as of Friday, her unit and others still didn’t have hot water.
"We’ve been going to other peoples’ homes to shower within the development for those of us that know the other people here with hot water," she said.
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Juul said it highlights an ongoing issue at the complex. "Our biggest frustration here is the lack of communication," she said. " A feeling like we have to just escalate things to such a level before anything happens, and we saw that same situation with the storm."
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FOX 7 reached out to the Palo Verde Apartments and they provided this statement from Robert Gasteiger, Vice President Marketing & Communications for Steadfast Living:
"Our residents are our highest priority and we empathize with their being without hot water following damage to our rooftop tankless water heaters caused by the unprecedented storm that passed through our area in February. We recognize the inconvenience this has caused and have worked diligently to source replacements to be installed as quickly as possible. To show our appreciation for their patience while we worked to resolve this situation, we will be extending a one-time 50% daily rent credit for each day the resident has gone without hot water since water was restored to our buildings by the city on February 21st and we recognized the damage to the heaters."
Gasteiger said the ordered parts had been delayed and are expected to arrive on Monday.
FOX7 reached out to Westdale Parke Apartments and didn’t hear back by deadline on Friday.