Senior citizens are demanding action, as they’ve been left in the dark for several days at their Richton Park residence home.
The electricity to the building was knocked out during Monday’s derecho that knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of ComEd customers, and many of the building’s residents are concerned for their health as they remain in the dark.
“I have COPD, and I cannot wear my Life Alert bracelet because the box is off,” 63-year-old Joanne Donaldson said.
Donaldson lives in the Cedar Ridge Elderly Apartments in Richton Park. The entire complex has been without power since Monday, leaving residents scrambling to cool off and to make sure they have enough food to get them by until the power comes back on.
“It’s hard, because we’ve got to walk up and down the stairs, and I have to go to my daughter’s house to switch my clothes,” Donaldson said. “It’s a lot of people who can’t get out of bed. You just don’t see them.”
ComEd has warned that some locations may not get electricity back until Saturday, leading to building management sending out a notice to residents that they may want to find other accommodations until that date.
“I’m very frustrated because you have elderly and disabled people here, and there’s nothing,” Debbie Wilke, whose 90-year-old mother lives in the complex, said. “Thank God one of her neighbors did have a battery charger and we could get her phone charged up.”
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A generator was brought in to help power the elevator, but lights remain out and refrigerators remain off, leading to spoiled food and upset residents.
Police and fire officials in Richton Park say that a second generator has been ordered for the facility, and residents are being checked on by officer frequently.
