Apartment residents reeling after water damage forces evacuations in Newark, Delaware

NEWARK, Delaware (WPVI) -- Emergency crews in Newark, Delaware, evacuated over 100 residents from a local apartment complex Wednesday night due to a ruptured sprinkler pipe.

Now, residents of the Village of Fountainview are reeling from the temporary loss of their homes.

The cause of the pipe burst is still under investigation, officials say.

Residents of the building say they are thankful no one was hurt, as cleanup is underway.

On Thursday, they began retrieving whatever items they could from their condos after the pipe burst on the top floor, causing water to cascade throughout the building.

Overall, 120 residents were evacuated from 64 units in the four-story complex.

"It comes on you by surprise. We were just getting ready for dinner at 6 p.m. last night, when the alarm went off to vacate the building," said resident Robert Brown.

Crews were able to remove the broken pipe on Thursday morning. According to local officials, it was too dark Wednesday night for crews to properly search for the pipe break.

However, residents are still unable to return home.

"I don't like to be moved out of my place, I like to stay in my place," said another resident, Pam Gately.

Residents also had to get their pets out safely, which was a struggle for some.

"She's very nervous," said Gately, referring to her dog.

The condo association's sprinkler contractor was on the scene Thursday morning. There was also a restoration contractor on site doing water cleanup, as well as vendors inspecting fire and electrical systems.

"With the loss of the sprinkler system, there's no fire protection in the building as well," noted Lawrence Tan, the public information officer of the Aetna House in Newark. "So certainly, a part of this process is that a vendor has to come in and restore the sprinkler system."

Most of the displaced residents are staying with friends or family during this time. The city's building inspectors are assessing the damage and will determine when people can move back in.

So far, electric and water has been restored to half the units. However, officials say they can't be reoccupied until the fire sprinkler or alarm system is back online.