To be more precise, our upstairs neighbor's apartment flooded yesterday. A pipe burst in their apartment, and flooded their Living Room and Kitchen so heavily that water beaded on our ceiling in both rooms and dripped quite steadily onto our floor, furniture, rug and any other belongings which may have been in the way.
Dave and I have endured flooding before. In September of 2001, I returned from being grounded in Connecticut for a week due to September 11th to water pouring in through an upstairs window causing the kitchen ceilig to collapse and water to pool in the basement to a tune of 3 inches.
Protocol for flooding
1: Stop the water at the source.
2: Remove all water.
3: Call your home insurance company.
4: Thoroughly dry any wet or damp surface.
Our family enjoyed a lovely Saturday evening of dinner and shopping at IKEA. We rode back relaxedly with our new driver. We walked in just past bedtime with two very sleepy girls. Thoroughly prepared to do a quick clothes-to-jammies switch and throw them in bed, all four of us were shocked to find a wet couch in the living room and a pool in the kitchen.
We called our emergency number and explained the problem. Within half an hour a man in a suit had arrived with his camera. He spoke English rather well, but had no intention of cleaning or drying any mess. A workman followed after about 15 minutes. He stood on a ladder. Then the two of them went to the upstairs apartment to investigate.
After over 30 minutes, they returned. They explained about the pipe. They explained that they had shut off the water. They said they would call our landlord in the morning. And they were ready to wash their hands of us.
Meanwhile, water was still steadily dripping in about 15 spots through our home. We are renters living a rather temporary existance. We only have 1 bucket, and our towels are limited to the number we need to keep ourselves clean. All of our resources were soaked, meaning that the wood floor beneath them was receiving an even dose of water as well. Our little man in a suit had no suggestions. He apparently had no access to towels or tarps. He did manage to find 3 buckets.
It is now 10:52 am. That is 14 hours after we discovered the problem. The ceiling drops water rarely now. Our every towel and wash cloth lies soaked on the floor. I have heard nothing from management or our landlord.
We look forward to a long process culminating in the removal of the drywall ceiling in the living room and the drop ceiling in the kitchen. We anticipate fighting for the removal of growing mold and deciding to live with water spots on the floor. We plan to fight tooth and nail for the full replacement of every one of our items which are water damaged, including a pricey new rug.
As they say, TIC. This Is China.
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