'What am I gonna do?': No elevator service for days at apartments for elderly and disabled veterans

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Wallace Vance is willing to wait a long time when it comes to his post-service passion of cooking. Swearing by his grandmother's recipes from her native Mississippi, Vance notes he'll often prepare dishes at no hotter than 275 degrees, even if that means waiting six hours.

However, the 77-year-old Vietnam veteran said he's run out of patience when it comes to the lone elevator at his near west side apartment complex, Veterans Manor.

Vance said he suffers from neuropathy that makes it hard to walk more than about 200 feet at a time. He and other residents said the elevator has been out of service for 10 days, and the stairs are the only way he can go in or out of the building.

"I can't see going to the grocery store," Vance said. "Because trying to bring groceries in and come up the stairs with my neuropathy, it's not a good idea."

Another resident, who only wanted to be identified as C.J., said he knows of at least two incidents where people using walkers fell on the stairs in recent days.

"There's a lot of friends in the building who have COPD," C.J. said. "As well as problems with their walking up and down the stairs, problems with their backs."

J.B. Bohannon, 70, said he is one of the residents who fell. Bohannon, who said he served in first Gulf War, said the fall happened over the weekend.

"I fell Saturday, and I think might've hit my head because I didn't remember anything," he said. "I was delirious."

All three residents told CBS 58 elevator issues have existed in the building at N. 35th St. and W. Wisconsin Ave. for years. However, they said things have gotten worse this year with the elevator being out of service for several days, including this current 10-day stretch.

In a statement, the property management company, Cardinal Capital, said they understand the inconvenience the outage has caused and are working to maintain communication with residents' relatives.

"We are aware of the ongoing elevator outage at Veterans Manor and want to assure residents, families, and the broader community that this issue is being taken seriously and is not being ignored," Tanya Puyleart, the company's asset management director, said in an email. "Our top priority is the safety and well-being of the residents. We are actively working with contractors to expedite repairs and restore full service as quickly as possible."

Puyleart also shared an exchange of emails she's had over the past several days with the elevator manufacturer, KONE. 

In the emails, Puyleart expressed frustration over how long repairs have taken and what she considered to be poor communication from KONE. 

"Despite repeated issues, we have not received adequate updates or timelines," Puyleart wrote a company representative last Wednesday. "And communication from KONE has not been a priority."

In their responses, KONE said they tried to replace other parts technicians believed to be causing the problem. Those fixes didn't work, and KONE now thinks the elevator needs a new car top board.

A KONE representative told Puyleart in an email Monday a technician will be back to Veterans Manor Tuesday to install the new board.

Until there's a lasting fix, the veteran residents said their biggest concerns might be what would happen in case of an emergency.

"I might have to jump out the window," Bohannon said. "I'm on the second floor, though. I'll still be f***ed up, though. I'm gonna break something."

Vance said he's already considered what he'd do if there was a need to evacuate.

"I try to formulate a plan in my own head as to what am I gonna do," he said. "How am I gonna do it? And I know I can't do it in a timely fashion."