Senior citizens at Rocky Mount complex feel 'neglected' by management after apartments flood

ROCKY MOUNT, NC (WTVD) -- At least five units at the Wood Hawk Senior Apartments in Rocky Mount sustained significant flooding after a frozen pipe burst last week following the recent snowfall.

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Thursday, cleanup crews were visible, ripping apart drywall and hauling it into a dumpster. Yet, on-site management was nowhere to be found.

"If something happens to one of us in here, it happens to all of us," said longtime resident Dorothy Houston.

Several large-scale industrial dryers are scattered throughout her apartment in an effort to dry the carpet. And the ceiling in the hallway that connects her living room to her bedroom is missing and covered by tarp.

Houston said she believes Wood Hawk, which is run by NRP Group's Raleigh office, is not doing enough to take care of her and her neighbors.

"They have not said anything," Houston told ABC11. "They came in here, put the units in here, they took the ceiling down, mopped up ... and ran."

Houston said her ceiling was "worse yesterday morning," She told ABC11 that she asked for assistance about 6:30 Wednesday morning and somebody showed up at 9 a.m.

Several units away, another tenant had similar issues. The 17-year-resident, wishing to be identified only as "Christine," said water flooded throughout her entire apartment following the pipe burst.

"When I walked in the house there was a big puddle of water in the kitchen and in the bathroom," she said. "Under the carpet was already mold and mildew. I was getting sick and couldn't understand why. Every time I get ready to go to bed, I start coughing."

Dryers are peppered throughout her apartment as well and her furniture will likely need replacing.

"The overall picture is we're being neglected," she said. "We've been neglected before this situation even happened."

Another resident echoed Christine's sentiment.

"They're big liars," the resident said. "I don't like liars. If you can't tell a person the truth, don't tell them nothing."

According to the residents, management has not offered to temporarily place them in hotel rooms or made an offer to compensate or reimburse affected tenants for property damage.

"They have disappointed us so much," Christine said. "And we don't know what the truth is from them."

While her apartment dries, she is staying with family and friends from church.

ABC11 reached out to NRP Group of Raleigh and received a call from its corporate office in Cleveland, Ohio.

A PR rep from the company responded via email:

"At Wood Hawk Senior Apartments we care deeply about the well-being of our residents and we are doing everything we can to assist them due to these unforeseen weather-related circumstances."