JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — This week marks one month since some neighbors at the Valencia Way apartments lost gas and hot water. It's been a slow but steady process to restore those necessities over the past few weeks.
Officials with Teco, the people's gas company, said the gas service has been restored to 11 out of the 39 buildings on site.
That means hundreds of people are still living day to day without one of the most basic necessities.
RELATED: Some Valencia Way neighbors seeing results while others continue waiting for gas
Angel Stewart is one of the neighbors at Valencia Way; she and her two children's building was one of the first to have its gas and hot water restored.
"I'm good now, I'm back home, so I'm happy. I'm good to go now. I got some hot water. I can cook for my babies so I'm good now," Stewart said.
She's one of the lucky ones however, as many others are still using temporary showers and can't cook food inside their homes.
The Millenia properties that owns Valencia Way said it has increased the number of contractors working to rebuild the underground gas line to expedite the process.
"It was frustrating at first. I'm not going to lie. It was, it had its moments," Stewart said.
The new underground gas line will consist of new piping from the meters to the apartment buildings, replacing the valves and conducting internal testing to ensure the gas service can be restored. Neighbors are happy to see progress being made.
RELATED: State senator calls for action at Valencia Way apartments in Jacksonville
RELATED: Hundreds of families forced to shower outside due to no hot water
However, State Sen. Audrey Gibson said she's doing her own investigation to ensure the safety of the other neighbors who are still waiting for their gas to be turned back on.
"It's very difficult to make them do something different when they're following HUD rules which apparently need to be changed. Proper maintenance needed to be done on that complex years ago," Gibson said.
TRENDING:
- 'Friday' actor-comedian John Witherspoon dies at 77
- If you see a letter about students paying for grades in Orange Park, it's not true
- Road rage leads to shotgun pulled on St. Augustine driver
- Photos: Georgia family's 7-year-old in critical condition after crash on Buckman Bridge
- Time is ticking: iPhone 5, older device users must update before Nov. 3
She contacted the surgeon general, which is equivalent to the secretary of health, and their team came out to make sure the portable showers had proper drainage and everything was in a clean state.
"My focus has been mostly safety and what the state can do in its capacity as the responsible entity for the health and safety of people in Jacksonville and in the state of Florida," Gibson said.
Gibson has also been in contact with officials at Valencia Way to stay up to date with the progress. She's trying to figure out how things got this bad and how to prevent another similar event from happening in the future.
Action News Jax Investigates: Jacksonville apartment complex Valencia Way without gas, running water
"From a federal government perspective, that is just ridiculous that they cannot see that rules need to be changed if they are allowing people to live every day without hot water and without the facilities to prepare meals over an extended period of time," Gibson said.
It was initially estimated the rebuilding could take six to eight weeks for completion, So far, it's been two weeks since they gave that estimation -- so it could still be a few more weeks before everyone has their gas restored.
STAY UPDATED: Download the Action News Jax app for live updates on breaking stories
Cox Media Group
