Dallas Nursing Home Spends Weekend Without Power

A nursing home in Dallas was forced to spend the past weekend without power.

Golden Acres Nursing Home

Golden Acres Living and Rehabilitation Center experienced a power outage last Friday and despite attempts to have the power turned on, no such thing happened until Monday afternoon. The facility has more than 200 residents at the moment.

In the mean time, the nursing home used backup generators throughout the weekend to help keep their vulnerable residents comfortable, but on Monday morning, they experienced a total blackout.

Repeated Attempts

A representative from Oncor, the utility company, said that they were unaware that the facility was a nursing home, otherwise it would have been higher on their priority list. Some say that isn’t the case, though, as they called the company repeatedly and specifically told them it was a nursing home.

Linda Roberts, daughter of a resident, told a local news station that her repeated pleas to the power company went unanswered for three days.

“It has been a very bad situation, especially this morning,” said Roberts. “Yesterday was bad enough, but today, when there is no lights, no heat, no power at all, it is very dangerous.”

Vulnerable Residents

Executive director of the home said that blankets, coats, and hats were used to keep the residents warm, but nonetheless, it posed a danger to residents. He also said that he was calling and texting the company to his best avail. Power was restored on Monday afternoon.

Residents are already extremely vulnerable during the winter, but a situation like this only serves to further worsen their vulnerability and could potentially cause health problems for those who are especially frail or sensitive to changes like extreme temperatures.

To read the full news report and see a video interview from Fox Dallas-Forth Worth, click here.