Renters at a Melbourne apartment complex who lost their possessions in last week's flash flooding have been ordered to vacate the property by Friday, after management terminated their leases and gave them roughly two days to leave.
Residents at Windover Palms on Fitness Circle found notices on their doors informing them they had to be out by Friday so cleanup and repair crews could begin work, according to documents shared with FOX 35. Management told tenants the repairs would take too long and that their leases were being ended as a result.
Among those being forced out is Mark Kamins, a 70-year-old disabled man who sat on his porch waiting for help after his home flooded. Another tenant, Kris Long, moved into the complex with his daughter this fall and had not finished unpacking when the water ruined their belongings. Couches, beds and televisions were left piled on the side of the street.
Kamins said the notice upended his life and left him afraid he will end up homeless. "This was my savior place. I'm 70-years-old. I have nowhere to go," he said. "I've got nowhere to go. I'm at a total loss. I haven't got much of an education, being 70-years-old, I can't work a computer, I don't know what to do."
He added that he is afraid of returning to living outdoors. "I hate to wind up back in the woods," Kamins said.
Long also voiced disbelief at the sudden deadline. "We have to be out by tomorrow," he said, describing how the floodwaters destroyed "couches, beds, televisions, everything."
FOX 35 News called the main office at Windover Palms on Thursday to ask about the situation facing the displaced renters. A person in the office said they had been instructed to offer no comment and were not speaking to the media.
It remains unclear whether the complex is offering any relocation assistance or temporary shelter to the displaced tenants. Officials and property managers also have not said how many apartments at Windover Palms were affected by the flooding or when any refunds might be released.
The information in this report was gathered by FOX 35 reporter Esther Bower, who interviewed displaced renters at the complex, contacted its main office and reviewed the vacate notice placed on tenants' doors.
