The Columbia Police Department is collecting donations to pay for hotel rooms for the 10 residents displaced by the fire at the East Columbia Apartments that claimed the life of a resident and urgently needs more help.
An anonymous donor paid for the residents to stay at a local hotel Tuesday night, but many of the residents had nowhere to go as of Wednesday morning. Columbia Police Chief Michael Kelly said the CPD collected enough donations today to cover hotel rooms for the 10 displaced residents for Wednesday and Thursday night, along with food, but more is needed until a long-term solution is reached.
“Long term is what we really need to start thinking about. There’s no plan (right now). City leaders are working on putting together a strategy long term,” Kelly said. “I don’t think they’re going to be in that building anytime soon. It’s going to be a months-long process for them to return home.
“It’s really unfortunate because these people have very little already, and now they have even less.”
The fire damage was limited primarily to one apartment unit and the hallway, but most of the units in the building have severe water and smoke damage. With the extensive damage, it is likely the entire interior of the building will need to be gutted and replaced.
Several residents are concerned about how they are going to replace their belongings and where they’re going to be sleeping for the foreseeable future.
“It’s messed up in there,” Deborah Jefferson, a resident of the building since 2012, said. “All of it is just messed up. I’ve been renting a bedroom set, and I can’t afford to pay for that now. Somebody is going to have to do something. I’m going to need someone to help me get some more furniture and somewhere to live. I don’t have nothing now.”
Kelly said that while city leaders are looking for a long-term solution, there is no obvious answer.
“There’s nobody you can call, that I know of, and say, ‘Hey, these people are desperate,’” he said. “The vast majority of these people are handicapped in some way. They’re elderly or have to use wheelchairs. This is a special needs population. There has to be someone out there (to help) or else they’re going to be sleeping out at Friendship Park. They would have absolutely nowhere to go.”
The American Red Cross gave each of the residents a prepaid card loaded with $350, but the organization does not pay for hotel rooms or long-term housing.
Hope Community Collective has donated clothing to the residents.
If you would like to make a donation, checks (made out to “Friends of Columbia Police Department)” or cash can be delivered to the CPD office at 205 Second St. or donations could be made via CashApp to $FriendsofCPDMS.
