TARPON SPRINGS, Fla. (WFLA) — When Elvira Ngjelina’s Tarpon Springs townhome was damaged by a fire earlier this month, she never realized that was only the beginning of her nightmare.
She just recently moved to the states with her kids from Albania last year.
“The nightmare started that day. And we are still going through it,” Ngjelina said. “Seems like an endless nightmare.”
The fire at the Palms complex damaged eight units. The cause remains under investigation.
Those who lived in those units that were damaged or destroyed now have to find another place to live. With the rental market red hot, that is becoming increasingly difficult.
Ngjelina went to management at the Palms pleading and asking if they had any available unit for rent.
“My God. We told them we were going to sleep by the pool. That’s what I told them,” said Ngjelina. “We don’t have a place, where to go. We don’t have family members, we don’t have relatives. Is there a way that we can find a place to stay? We know the prices of rents are very, very expensive right now. Very high.”
The complex found Ngjelina a unit, but only for the next four months. After that, she and her two children will have to find somewhere else to live.
Some people are not that lucky.
Darline Emmanuel and her five kids escaped the fire that day with only the clothes on their backs.
“Like when we left in the fire, we didn’t even have shoes on our feet at the time,” Emmanuel said. “It was like, get out the house, grabbed our dog and that was it.”
Emanuel and her kids are now staying with her family on the east coast because they couldn’t find a place to stay here.
“I don’t have any friends or family in Tarpon [Springs] or even in Pinellas County at all, so I had to drive to Palm Beach because that’s where my family is located just to have someplace to stay for now with the kids,” said Emmanuel. “I’ve been calling all sorts of places, looking online – like, it’s crazy. A lot of these places are telling me they won’t have anything available till August. And I don’t know at this point what I’m really going to do.”
Neighbors are doing what they can to help. Chad Grady set up a fundraiser to raise money to help those displaced with expenses.
“When I was there I was just thinking, these people are losing everything that they have. All their kids go to school around here, they don’t have a place to live,” said Grady. “They need housing more than anything. It would be nice if someone could waive the fees, you know, the first, last and the deposit. They need that and money.”