Residents at The Lights apartments in Denton told NBC 5 they have been dealing with faulty A/C units for several days, and the insides of their apartments have reached upwards of 90 degrees.
Resident Tyra Hunter prepared flyers for her neighbors with information and resources to address what’s happening there. She said her unit and several surrounding units have been without consistent reliable air conditioning for nearly two weeks.
She said she noticed there was a problem on June 6.
“I have my thermostat set to 72. I came back home, and it was like 83,” she said. “We cooked dinner, it was 85, and it just progressively kept getting up and up and up. It’s perpetually hot all the time now. I can’t sleep. I have no appetite.”
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Hunter shared an email with NBC 5 sent from apartment management to residents on June 8, saying they were aware of the A/C being out. On June 12, another email to residents said the apartment’s chiller was running again, and work orders would be closed. An email sent to residents the following day said the chiller was working and could take up to 48 hours to start cooling units.
However, on June 15, management sent another email to residents saying they’d been made aware that the chiller was not working and some apartment units were not cooling properly.
Kaivyn Austin said his apartment got up to 92 degrees inside.
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“I’ve been doing just the bare minimum, trying to take a shower, trying to stay cool,” Austin said. “I have a little dog with me, so I’ve been worried about the dog more.”
Austin is one of a few residents to receive window a/c units from apartment maintenance, but he said it’s made a small difference.
NBC 5 placed several calls to apartment management and had not heard back by Tuesday evening.
Experts say renters are entitled to repairs that affect their health and safety. Renters are advised to put repair requests in writing and call code enforcement or relevant inspectors in their county or city.
Hunter said she simply wanted to feel comfortable inside her apartment.
“It’s taking a toll,” she said.
For more information on tenants’ rights and resources:
How to make and escalate apartment repair requests – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth (nbcdfw.com)
