Skip to main content

Fire Alarm at KMHC 2023

I don't particularly like posting Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services screw ups but there is no other alternative. 

Early Saturday morning a kitchen fire broke out in a native elder's unit at KMHC. The Hamilton fire dept was dispatched and soon the kitchen fire was under control. The tenant was sent to the hospital for treatment and observation and it looks like he'll be fine

Here's the kicker folks! The main fire alarm has to be reset from the main control panel and no OAHS employee were available to do so. The building has a unique fire alarm system I lived there for years and I know what I'm saying. When the alarm goes off fire sirens can be heard in the hallways and in each unit. A tenant cannot turn the siren sound off in their unit. They can mute it for 5 min then it comes back on. And trust me the siren volume is worthy of a major headache.

Tenants had to endure the fire alarm siren for nearly 5 hours. Imagine that!  These are native elders and nobody gives a crap. What's the use of having a OAHS after hours phone number when no one is around. Tenants were told OAHS will reach a maintenance person to reset the alarm, the problem is the staff member lives in Waterloo, Ontario. Geez! He/she may as well be on the moon. And where is the project manager Luke Johns? Did he immediately arrive to save the day! Nope.

My advice to KMHC tenants, file a complaint to OAHS head office request an explanation and a open letter apology to be posted on the bulletin board at the KMHC entrance. You may want to let Ward 2 Councillor know what happened also include Hamilton City Housing new CEO they fund OAHS.  

Remember request only don't place demands in your complaint letter otherwise OAHS will take it as a threat and each employee will need therapy. :P

tk 


 

Comments

Tony King said…
This afternoon I ran into a former OAHS employee at the gym, after I shared the story about KMHC she said this happened before at the building. Shame on Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services

Popular posts from this blog

Poor Working Environment

My unit is located near the KMHC office, along with a friendly wave or hello I see the junior staff going about their business in a cheerful manner with the exception of one employee.   You would think KMHC has a pleasant working environment but that is not the case.   March 2016 is when Urban Native Homes head office was forced to move from their former spacious location to the cramp basement level of KMHC.   There were approx. 8-10 staff members at the time.   Then the Urban Native Homes financial scandal broke out and soon after the current UNH acting director’s illicit past became public knowledge, everyone was worried will they have a job.  Fearful meetings going on in the community room, the rumor mill was in full rotation while I just stood back and observed the panic.   Check your search engine it states this building location is Urban Native Homes head office yet that is not correct.  There is no real head office, the organization has s...

Koo Gaa Da Win Manitou

I hope one day we can truly say there is a haven where older natives who experienced homelessness can find a place to call home and have the resources available for the best quality of life in their golden years. Koo Ga Da Win Manitou Housing Complex has a long journey in order to reach that goal. Perhaps more funding is needed or better trained/experienced outreach workers who can relate to tenants concerns and health issues. Programs that would interest all tenants as a whole would be nice. Most important we tenants must try to get along with their neighbours. (as the good book says "Love thy neighbour") I've been here less then a year and I've observed alot, we have a diversity of tenants living in the building from different reservations and walks of life. Some have problems with alcohol, prescription drug addictions, physical disabilities and slight mental disabilities. The one thing we all have in common is our health concerns, from chronic back pain to deadly...

Wigwamin Terrace

After many years I received a call for Toronto Native Housing offering a vacancy so I decided to explore my options by attending a viewing of what's available. But first I did a phone interview with acting project manager Paul Feitelberg. He said my personal and financial information checks out fine then we talked about the negative reference I got from Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services. I was asked for my side of the story and I also invited Paul to read this blog site to find out more who I am.  A few days later I called Paul for an update, I was complimented on my blog posts and he could see the love and compassion I have for the Native people on this blog site.  Due to the Hamilton cyber attack it was difficult for Paul get a reference from my current housing provider so with my assistance I helped him get in contact with their office. I received an excellent tenant reference from my housing provider. When I asked about OAHS he said he's going to ignore their negative re...