SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — Seniors in their 80s, 90s, and even 100s who were displaced after a fire in San Francisco’s Japantown earlier this year are not backing down. They refuse to leave their temporary shelter until they get the respect they deserve.
“I almost fell into depression because I didn’t know what was happening.” says 91-year-old Young Lim. She remembers the fire that ripped through the Jones Senior Homes along Fillmore Street like it was yesterday.
“A fireman came in and lifted me and took me downstairs,” she says.
The blaze on May 10 forced more than 50 seniors of the Jones Senior Homes to find new housing. Many relocated temporarily to the Extended Stay building in Alameda. But on Sept. 4, residents who lived on the second floor of the Jones were given a letter, saying restoration work was done, and they needed to move back by Sept. 6.
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Young Ko is 85 years old and says it’s impossible for anyone to move in with just two days’ notice. “I feel worried and concerned,” she says. Another woman near him says they just need more advanced warning.
Panicked and confused due partially to the language barrier, men and women up to 103 years old grabbed their belongings and walkers and attempted to move back. A 92-year-old with an ailing back, even reduced to tears.
“It’s really hard to live under these conditions. This management,” said Ko.
Nonprofit groups such as Asians are Strong and the Korean Community Center of the East Bay, which have been aiding seniors with food and transportation since the fire, are now helping with this new chapter. The Asian Law Caucus getting involved as well, to foster more communication between the seniors and the Alton Management Group that oversees the Jones property.
ABC7 News anchor Dion Lim reached out to Billy Hutton from Alton Management. Hutton said he was eager to move the seniors back and acknowledged that the move could have gone smoother. He apologized and promised more communication in different languages going forward.
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Art Choi, program manager of Korean Community Center of the East Bay, says he’s proud of his seniors.
“This is what we want. We want them to speak their mind and be able to have a voice,” Choi says.
As the rest of the residents wait to hear what’s next, Lim knows what she wants.
“The number one thing is for them to be nice to us,” she says. “They’re very rude and the number one thing is- I want the mangers to be nice to us and to treat us like humans.
Hutton says he hopes the Jones apartments will be restored in the coming months and for all seniors to be back at home by Thanksgiving.
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