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Sewage spewing out of apartment drains; mom of two in bad situation

1 year 7 months 2 weeks ago Thursday, August 11 2022 Aug 11, 2022 August 11, 2022 7:15 PM August 11, 2022 in News
Source: WBRZ

BATON ROUGE - A tenant says her landlord isn't repairing a spewing sewage issue but still expects rent money. The mother of two contacted 2 On Your Side for help.

There is feces coming up through Kaunyia Harvey's tub drain, sinks and toilet.

"Unfortunately, sewage is coming through my tub, and it's coming up through the toilet, and you can't use neither," she said.

The single mother is doing the best she can in a situation like this by taking it one day at a time.

"You can imagine how we are using the bathroom and how we're bathing, but you got to do what you got to do," said Harvey.

Harvey lives in an apartment in Southern Heights on 79th Avenue. Blue tarps cover the roofs, and sewage is pooling in one of the parking lots, leaking from a pipe coming from Harvey's building.

Harvey says she and her children have been living there for about a year. It's not the first time she's had a sewage issue there, but this might be the worst. The current situation has been going on since the middle of July.

The sewage overflowed onto the floors and seeped into the carpet, which has since been removed. She uses towels, blankets and a mop to soak up the waste. The sewage is still coming up through the drains, and it smells awful.

A plumber was called, but the problem has not been repaired. Harvey says her landlord is still asking for rent.

"Every dollar I get, it goes to him," she said.

The buildings on 79th Avenue are owned by Pelican Properties & Investments and managed by American Property Management. The property is wrapped up in a legal battle involving foreclosure. The Department of Environmental Quality has been out to investigate the situation, and a second complaint was made with DEQ on Thursday.

Following WBRZ's calls Thursday, American Property Management Group says pending repairs are scheduled to take place tomorrow morning. 

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