{"id":113615,"date":"2026-01-07T03:10:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T03:10:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/113615\/"},"modified":"2026-01-07T03:10:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T03:10:09","slug":"houston-seniors-stranded-as-elevators-remain-out-of-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/113615\/","title":{"rendered":"Houston seniors stranded as elevators remain out of service"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Houston Houston seniors frustrated about elevator outage<\/a> <\/p>\n

For the third time in three weeks, we’re highlighting serious concerns at senior living facilities across the Houston area where elevators have been out of service, leaving elderly residents stranded in their homes. FOX 26’s Leslie DelasBour explains.<\/p>\n

HOUSTON – For the third time in three weeks, we’re highlighting serious concerns at senior living facilities across the Houston area where elevators have been out of service, leaving elderly residents stranded in their homes.<\/p>\n

This latest case is in the Independence Heights community at 109 East Whitney Street, where residents say the building\u2019s only elevator has been down for a full week.<\/p>\n

I reached out to multiple agencies to determine who is responsible when elevators go out at independent senior living facilities \u2014 and what oversight exists.<\/p>\n

What we know:<\/p>\n

Agencies Contacted About Elevator Oversight and Responsibility <\/p>\n

Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR):
TDLR told said that although they regulate elevators statewide, this particular elevator is located within the City of Houston and is not under their jurisdiction.<\/p>\n

City of Houston:
The city said it does not have oversight of the elevator at this facility.<\/p>\n

Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC):
HHSC said the building is classified as an independent living facility, so the agency does not have oversight.<\/p>\n

Houston Fire Department:
The Fire Department said responsibility for elevator inspections would fall under Houston Permitting and Building Code Enforcement. Fire inspectors would only become involved if the elevator served as a means of fire egress, at which point they would ensure safe egress is maintained.<\/p>\n

What they’re saying:<\/p>\n

Residents share concerns, and the building operator responds <\/p>\n

Because this is an independent living facility, we learned it was ultimately the nonprofit organization that operates the building who bears responsibility for getting the elevator repaired.<\/p>\n

Residents say the repeated outages are more than an inconvenience \u2014 they can be dangerous.<\/p>\n

81-year-old resident Ella Brooks said this is not the first time the elevator has gone out during the two years she has lived there.<\/p>\n

“The elevator has been going out, and I couldn\u2019t get out to doctor appointments, grocery stores, or something I need,” she said. “I couldn\u2019t go to church Sunday, which I enjoy going to church.”<\/p>\n

She says she cannot use the stairs due to multiple medical conditions.<\/p>\n

“I have two hip replacements on both sides. I have a knee replacement. I have a stitch on my right knee, and I have two stents in my heart,” she said. “I cannot operate stairs, because I am on a walker.”<\/p>\n

When I asked what residents are told when the elevator goes out, she said the response rarely changes.<\/p>\n

“They\u2019re going to order a part, and we have to wait until the part comes in. That\u2019s all we hear.”<\/p>\n

Residents say the outages disrupt their daily lives and healthcare.<\/p>\n

“We can\u2019t get this, and we can\u2019t get that, and we\u2019ve worked all of our days for this,” she said.<\/p>\n

“This has to stop because we have to change our doctor\u2019s appointments, and that\u2019s hard for us to do,” she added. “I have diabetes and I\u2019m in a bad state with it, and I need better service.”<\/p>\n

The other side:<\/p>\n

Response From the Nonprofit That Operates the Building : The Housing Corporation of Greater Houston. <\/p>\n

After repeated requests to get some answers, we spoke with The Houston Corporation of Greater Houston, which operates the building. They provided the following information:<\/p>\n

Elevator outage began: December 31 (New Year\u2019s Eve)<\/p>\n

Cause: Elevator motor malfunction<\/p>\n

Compliance status: Elevator has a valid Certificate of Compliance from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.<\/p>\n

Repair status: Service company Otis\/Amtech contacted; parts ordered and delivered; repairs expected to be completed by the end of the day Wednesday<\/p>\n

Resident support: Staff checking in with residents who have mobility limitations<\/p>\n

Resident communication: Management says residents were notified about the repair timeline and safety plans.<\/p>\n

What’s next:<\/p>\n

State Representative Responds <\/p>\n

State Representative Charlene Ward Johnson, who represents District 139, had members of her office on-site at the facility Tuesday and sent the following statement about the ongoing issue. We spoke to her days before Christmas about another elevator outage at a facility in Acres Homes:<\/p>\n

The Source: FOX 26 Reporter Leslie Delasbour spoke with numerous officials about the situation, as well as one resident at the facility.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Houston<\/a>Harris County<\/a>News<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Houston seniors frustrated about elevator outage For the third time in three weeks, we’re highlighting serious concerns at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":113616,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[405,56,58,57,223,216,393],"class_list":{"0":"post-113615","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-houston","8":"tag-harris-county","9":"tag-houston","10":"tag-houston-headlines","11":"tag-houston-news","12":"tag-news","13":"tag-tx","14":"tag-us"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113615","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=113615"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/113615\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/113616"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=113615"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=113615"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=113615"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}