EASTPOINTE, MI (WXYZ) — On Monday, an Eastpointe shelter that serves young, at-risk mothers experienced major flooding after pipes burst in their facility.
Joella Bush, the director of Gianna House says the frozen and busted pipes forced all the women to leave.
"As you can see this area was also completely flooded," she said.
The flooding came from pipes on the third floor.
"I was able to speak to the fire department. They said that there are hundreds of gallons of water that, at the time, was being dumped into our facility. He described them as being waterfalls throughout the building."
Bush says the break isn’t from the plumbing But the fire suppression system and the aging infrastructure.
"It's taxing for our boiler system to push air, or heat up here to the third floor. We do have a couple of using but those units did not suffice in keeping this area properly heating during the frigid temperatures that we just had," Bush said.
The immersion destroyed nearly all of the local shelter's donations. A devastating impact for the struggling moms.
"When I heard that, I was so sad," Frial Mina said.
Mina lives near Gianna House and often comes by to get essentials for her children. She along with the other mothers may have to look elsewhere right now.
"Unfortunately, I should say, insurance never covers everything. So, we are going to have a large out-of-pocket that we have to pay," Bush said.
If you would like to help restore Gianna House, you can go to GiannaHouse.org. Bush said supporters can click the donate tab and the organization will also have a Gofundme link on the website.
