It had been two days since the pipes burst in Shameka West’s Washington Park apartment and flooded every room.

       With each step West took Tuesday, water seeped from the living room carpet. The ceiling was brown with water stains, and the paint was peeling. Small sections of the walls had been cut open, leaving exposed wires. Her back door was frozen shut.

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       “This is terrible,” West said, gesturing to the muddied floors of the apartment, which she rents through the Chicago Housing Authority. All of the family’s food had been piled high on the dining room table. “I’m not taking my children back here.”

       By Tuesday afternoon, almost none of the damage had been repaired, she said. While the Tribune was present, three CHA employees arrived to survey the damage.

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       Despite the visible water damage to the carpet, walls and ceiling, a CHA spokesperson later told the Tribune in a statement that the unit was “fit for occupation.” The pipes had been repaired Monday, and that West was encouraged to file a claim for damaged property, according to the statement.

       “The only repair pending is the ceiling, which must be dry before it can be repainted,” the statement said. “Our staff has visited the apartment and it is fit for occupation.”

       West said she and her three children have been left with no long-term solution as dangerously cold conditions continue across the Chicago area. They’re currently staying with a family member in Oak Park.

       The ordeal began Sunday night. West had been watching TV in the living room of her Washington Park apartment when she first heard the distinct sound of rushing water. She raced to the kitchen and saw water gushing from burst pipes, flowing from the lights fixtures, cabinets and the ceiling.

       Shameka West shows damage from a burst pipe in her apartment to CHA personnel on Jan. 16, 2024. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

       West hurriedly awoke her children — including her 8-year-old son, Ayden, who has special needs. They huddled in the living room, which was pooling with freezing water. But as she called the emergency number for her building, no one picked up. After several tries, she dialed 911.

       “It was just so scary, everything was happening so fast,” West, 32, said. “There was water everywhere.”

       The Fire Department arrived Sunday night but was unable to shut off the water for hours, West said. All their belongings were soaked.

       West’s son Ayden has Williams syndrome, a rare genetic condition that causes intellectual disabilities and heart problems. As the apartment was flooding, he sat in the living room, crying and shivering in the cold, his mother said. The city’s collection site recorded a temperature of 10 degrees below zero Monday morning.

       “(Ayden) didn’t understand what was happening,” said West, who cares for him full time. “He was so overwhelmed.”

       At around 2 a.m., they were forced to evacuate due to the risk of an electrical fire. They left behind everything.

       The next day, she said she heard nothing from the CHA or her landlord. The property’s rental office was closed for the Martin Luther King holiday. It wasn’t until the CHA gave a statement to WGN-Ch. 9, which ran a story about the burst pipes Monday night, that she got an update. The CHA told the station that the unit was “suitable for occupation”

       Shameka West and her 8-year-old son Ayden in their temporary housing on Jan. 16, 2024, after a burst pipe in a CHA apartment destroyed many of their belongings. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

       “I thought, ‘That can’t be true, because the water was running for nine hours,’ ” West said.

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       She visited the apartment that night. What West saw confounded her: the ceilings were caved in, the light fixtures were dangling and water pooled over her kitchen counters. In fact, everything was wet, from the family’s furniture to their clothing, she added.

       “I called and told the rental office this place is not suitable to be lived in at all,” West said.

       After seeing the unit Tuesday, West said she’s requesting to relocate to a new apartment. But a new space would have to be accessible for Ayden. When they moved into the first-floor unit, he used a wheelchair. It was unclear when a new CHA apartment would become available, she said.

       “I don’t really have a plan right now,” West said. “No one has told me anything.”

       A family member has set up a GoFundMe page for West and her children. Over $1,800 has been raised.

       “There’s been an outpouring of support, and I’m so grateful,” West said. “But I’m also devastated. We need somewhere to live.”

       karmanini@chicagotribune.com