Water damage to keep senior home shut for week or more
Burst pipe at Northampton facility forced relocation of nearly 90 of its residents
A burst pipe at a Northampton senior home has displaced nearly 90 residents, causing flooding that will prevent them from returning for a week or more, an official said Sunday.
Sacred Heart Senior Living had water damage Saturday afternoon that Gayle Yastrop, the center's executive director, described as “massive,” saying it soaked walls, ceilings, furniture, hallways and administrative offices, but is thought to have missed residents' rooms.
“I don't believe that anybody lost any personal effects,” Yastrop said Sunday. “If anything, it was very, very minimal.”
The pipe, which was part of the East 21st Street building's sprinkler system, broke on the third floor, likely from a buildup of ice, Yastrop said.
Residents, who total 89, have been relocated to other senior homes, where they are being provided shared accommodations and in some cases, their own rooms, Yastrop said.
They are staying in Upper Saucon Township at Sacred Heart Senior Living at Saucon Creek, in Whitehall Township at Whitehall Manor and a second building at the Northampton site. Others have been taken in by their families.
The center's four cats are accounted for and are being cared for by staff members, said Yastrop, who brought two of the pets to her home.
Yastrop estimated that it will be one to two weeks before the center can open again.
She said cleanup crews are working long hours, and she was taken aback by the offers of help from the community, whether from the emergency crews who responded, to Redner's, which donated dinner to the displaced residents, to local churches, family members and neighbors who have contacted the center.
“So many people have called in to say, ‘What can I do to help?'” Yastrop said.
On Saturday, the evacuated residents were temporarily relocated to the borough's community center on Laubach Avenue, where cots were available.
Borough Manager LeRoy Brobst said residents began transferring to the other senior homes about 8 p.m., a process that took several hours to complete. Brobst said his wife, Debbie, who runs the community center, didn't get home until nearly midnight.
Brobst has an in-law who lives at Sacred Heart, and he said he can appreciate the impact the flood had on residents there. He praised emergency responders and the home's employees for the work they did to comfort the displaced.
“As far as I know, the staff was very, very good with the people, kept them all in check, kept their anxieties and fears in control,” Brobst said.
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