Kansas City treatment facility goes without water for nearly a month
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Residents at a Kansas City treatment facility are looking for help as the water in one of their buildings has been out for nearly a month.
The north building of Benilde Hall has been without water since Dec. 21. A pipe collapsed, which caused the water to go out.
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“We’ve got two toilets sitting outside below freezing, and we’re supposed go out there and do our business? That’s crazy. That’s stupid,” one resident told FOX4 Wednesday.
Benilde Hall is near 23rd and College on the city’s east side. Workers there treat men with substance abuse disorders. The north building houses nearly 50 people. That resident told FOX4 he came from the streets, and he came to Benilde Hall to get help.
“When this issue is getting bad like it is, some of it brings back bad memories when you’re out there in that cold trying to go and use the restroom,” he continued.
“I’m like, ‘Boy, I can make due.’ But when I have to get up and go up there and wait to take a shower or go to the bathroom, then I need to go outside, yeah, it’s morally depressing. It’s physically depressing, and it’s messing with my mind.
“And I’m not the only one that feels that way obviously.”
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The south building houses the majority of the veterans Benilde Hall helps. It can house about another 50 people, but it’s not at full capacity. Regardless, there are just three restrooms and three showers for dozens of people at the campus.
“You have 80 guys using one bathroom and then another bathroom down there for the veterans,” south building resident Richard Johnson told FOX4 Wednesday.
“Some of them can’t get in the other one, like the gentlemen in wheelchairs. There’s only one wheelchair-accessible bathroom, and it’s the one by the kitchen.
“It becomes an issue when you have people trying to get ready for work, trying to go to the bathroom. They’re not going to use a porta-potty out there when it’s 15-20 below zero.”
The plumber Benilde Hall used told them an additional obstruction was keeping them from fixing this issue. They also said it involved a city line and not a Benilde Hall line. City crews were seen at Benilde Hall on Wednesday.
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“Our staff is in contact with the property owner over issues with their connection. KC Water is working to schedule a meeting with them as soon as possible to determine the path of the private sewer line and find out where the building is connected to the sewer main,” KC Water Department spokesperson Jackson Overstreet told FOX4 Wednesday afternoon.
“KC Water is not able to make repairs and maintenance of lines under commercial property. Our staff will offer any advice to the property owner on how to fix this problem,” Overstreet continued.
Leaders think the pipe collapsed because it was old, not because of the weather. The high on Dec. 21 was 56 degrees. The city had a record low for warmth that day of just 51 degrees.
