OKC renter says she's lived with sewage in her apartment for months, complex won't fix problem
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) - A south Oklahoma City renter said she has dealt with sewer water covering her floors for more than 10 months. She said the apartment complex, 717 Ventura South Apartments, will not fix the problem and her home has become unsafe and unhealthy for her and her entire family.
Ashlee Maze said her downstairs toilet started overflowing a few weeks after she moved it.
"It's flooded my entire downstairs,” said Maze. “Everything I own has literally been soiled."
Maze has three children under the age of three, one of which has special needs. She said they have been confined to the top level of the townhome because her floors are soaked with wet, wastewater.
"I just kept dealing with it because I was so afraid,” said Maze. “I did haven't a place to live with my kids."
She said her living room, dining room, kitchen, utility room and downstairs bathroom constantly have one to two inches of sewer water on the floors.
She said she has filed nearly a dozen complaints to the office manager, but nothing has been done to fix the problem. She said the complex has come by and tried to clean the carpets but the problem, the overflowing toilet, has never been addressed.
"It was noted to me that there was supposedly a clog in the main line and everybody's septic or sewage system is flowing into our apartment," said Maze.
Video sent to News 4 showed used toilet paper in wads floating throughout the hallway. She was told she needed to move out of her unit, but Maze said the manager told her she would need to pay hundreds of dollars at her own expense.
Already Maze said she has spent money on dry vacuums, towels, and fans trying to keep her floors and walls from molding over.
KFOR was invited by Maze to see the damage in person but as soon as we arrived at her front door a security officer quickly confronted us. He told Maze that even if we were invited guests to the property, it was a violation of her lease.
We obtained a copy of the lease and found that our visit did not violate her lease, despite the claims from the security guard.
We also attempted to speak to the property manager at the complex. She approached our photojournalist while he was shooting video across the street and told him he could not shoot video of the complex. When our reporter, Adria Goins, asked if she was the manager she quickly put her phone to her ear and told our reporter she would not speak to her while walking away.
Maze said she has renters insurance but said the property manager would not tell her insurance company the unit was unlivable. She also has fears she will be retaliated against for speaking to News 4 but said she could not live in those conditions any longer.