PITCAIRN, Pa. — A Pitcairn apartment building that was ordered to close for safety reasons on Thursday left many residents without a place to live.
Residents of the Young Hotel said they were given 20 minutes to pack their belongings and leave.
"They gave us 20 minutes. They were telling everyone in the building to get out. They said something about code violations or something like that," said Patrick Andrews.
Channel 11's Lori Houy went to the apartment building on Friday. She saw a sign on the door reads "Closed by police. Go to fire hall."
Houy reported that building inspectors found numerous violations at the Young Hotel including faulty wiring, defective sprinkler systems and an unsafe fire escape.
Despite the owner's efforts to repair the problems, a judge said the building was too dangerous for the 40 people who live there.
"I don't know anyone. I have no place to go. What am I supposed to do?" said tenant Tim Lemley.
An emergency hearing was held in common pleas court to allow the tenants back in, but the judge refused to allow that until the building's owner, Don Young, comes up with a plan to make repairs and implement them.
"Mr. Young has nothing but best intentions to become fully compliant with the court and the borough of Pitcairn," said Young's attorney, Christopher Mitchel.
"It's a compliance issue," said Pitcairn solicitor Bruce Dice. "The owner has difficulty keeping promises."