For Micheal Nichols, wearing a mask inside of his home is the norm.
And when 7 Action News first met the former marine -- disabled with crippling illnesses-- he made it clear why, showing troubling photos of the raw sewage that had been backing up his basement.
Everything being flushed down the toilet - feces, urine, toilet paper - was appearing in his basement. And this was far from the first time. In the last ten years he said it had happened 12 or 13 times.
Each time, it had damaged his furnace and hot water tank, leaving him with no heat.
The city, Nichols said, was responsible but had failed to clean up the mess and install a valve that would stop it from happening again.
When I stepped in, his furnace and hot water tank were replaced. Someone was called to clean out the sewage, and Nichols was offered to stay in a hotel for a period of time.
But Nichols said the cleanup fell short, with some sewage remaining, leaving him unable to use properly use his heat and AC. When using the units, Nichols said it blew out a strong smell of sewage throughout my whole life and that he makes him vomit.
Meanwhile, he said a more permanent solution still isn’t in place. So 7 Action News got back on the case, the city of Inkster committing to return to the home on Thursday. The Mayor will also be in attendance.
As for a more permanent fix, the city said it will happen on Wednesday of next week.
7 Action News will hold the city to that timeline.
