School staff members help residents of troubled apartment complex

Posted October 29, 2008 · October 29, 2008

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Texas Cable News - Dallas,TX*

By Shern-Min Chow / 11 News

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HOUSTON—The staff of a local elementary school has gone out of their

way to help residents of a troubled apartment complex.

Earlier this week, a toddler drowned in the Vista Bonita Apartment

complex's pool.

The tragedy thrust the complex into the spotlight.

Residents there said the place has been in disrepair for some time,

but things have only gotten worse since Ike.

The staff at South Houston Elementary noticed that after the storm,

more and more kids who lived in the apartments would show up to

school sick or not show up at all.

That prompted them to send counselors to the complex.

Castro lives at Vista Bonita and has three children in

the school.

The counselors visited her home, and she told them about how the

living conditions there have kept her kids sick.

" When we take `em to the doctor, they say it's because they've been

getting infections. It's because of mold, because of the conditions

of the apartments, " said.

Unhappy with what they saw, the counselors encouraged the 10

families at the complex who have students at their school to sign a

petition.

The counselors also contacted the city on their behalf.

On Tuesday, more than a dozen inspectors descended on the complex,

writing 70 citations.

The school also contacted FEMA and held a meeting with officials at

the campus to help parents apply for federal assistance.

Still, thanks to all the attention, said she found an

anonymous note in Spanish on her front door Wednesday morning.

It told her to stop talking to reporters, the city and the school.

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