Tenants steamed by no air conditioning

UPPER MERION, Pa. - July 20, 2008 Residents say it's a meltdown. At 6:30 Sunday evening a thermometer in an apartment read 89 degrees, down 3 degrees from the afternoon.

But its not just one unit. There were reportedly more than 100 complaints. Fed up with the situation some have gone out and bought their own air conditioning units.

In 24 hours a portable unit cooled Melissa Johnstone's living room to 78 degrees, but nearby bedrooms are miserably hot. Many rely on fans to push around the warm moist air.

Management refused to talk to Action News about conditions but did call police complaining we were trespassing.

A neighbor says petitions and complaints to management and apparently even the township have produced no relief yet. The concern is the heat could cause more than discomfort.

Action News tried to reach out to township officials to see if they were trying to monitor the temperature situation, but so far we have not heard back. Police tell us it is their understanding that there is no proactive issue that authorities can take when it comes to the lack of air conditioning until someone comes literally ill.

Copyright © 2024 WPVI-TV. All Rights Reserved.