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Outage hits vulnerable seniors at Peach Stone Living
More than 300 senior residents living at the Peach Stone Independent Living complex in Marietta were left without power on Tuesday afternoon, sparking fear and anger. The outage forced vulnerable residents, including those relying on oxygen tanks and wheelchairs, to navigate the dark while worrying about food spoilage on fixed incomes.
MARIETTA, Ga. - Power has been restored to a Marietta senior living complex after a Tuesday afternoon outage left hundreds of elderly residents in the dark and sparked fears over life-saving medical equipment.
Crews returned electricity to the Peachstone Independent Senior Living complex late Tuesday following a multi-hour shutoff that affected approximately 300 units. While power is back on, residents remain frustrated over the cause of the disruption.
What they're saying:
While the lights are back on, the reason they went out remains a point of contention. Resident Susan Wonder said she took it upon herself to call the utility provider for answers.
"I called Cobb EMC, and they said Peachstone hadn't paid the bill," Wonder said. "I don't know why they'd shut off the power. Everybody knows better. It's inhumane."
Management at the complex's main office refused to respond to questions regarding the claims of unpaid bills.
The other side:
In a statement, Cobb EMC Director of Consumer Marketing Krista Williams confirmed the outage but declined to provide specific details.
"We are aware of the situation," Williams said. "Cobb EMC does not comment on or provide details regarding individual account statuses. We can confirm that power was off for a few hours today and has since been restored."
Dig deeper:
For the seniors living at Peachstone, the afternoon was defined by anxiety rather than just inconvenience. Many residents rely on power for medical necessities, such as oxygen concentrators.
Resident Stewart Greeson, who is on oxygen, had to scramble when his machine failed. "No power so the machine is down, but these things only last a few hours," Greeson said of his backup tanks.
Beyond medical equipment, residents on fixed incomes expressed concerns over their basic necessities. Gwendolyn Dewalt watched the ice melt in her kitchen as the hours ticked by.
"The refrigerator is just melting down. The food in there is going to spoil," Dewalt said. She added that the darkness was particularly dangerous for her neighbors with cognitive challenges. "People are scared to death... some of these people have mental issues, and they're going to be confused."
While residents expressed relief when the lights finally flickered back on, many echoed Wonder’s sentiment that the situation should have been avoided entirely.
The Source: The information in the article comes from residents Gwendolyn Dewalt, Stewart Greeson, and Susan Wonder, along with a formal statement from Krista Williams, the director of consumer marketing for Cobb EMC.