PALESTINE, Texas — Dispatch confirmed a fire broke out at a Palestine low-income affordable housing complex on Monday at 3:43 p.m., leaving a mother of two children without a home.
Woodside Village Apartments has offered another “ready to move-in” unit that the resident refuses to move into because of multiple issues.
Images taken by Shamya Tilley show how the smoke from the fire damaged her entire top floor bedroom and restroom.
"I had just woken up and ran outside," Tilley said. "Me and my aunts’ looked over and noticed smoke. I was like, it looks like it’s a fire."
Tilley and her kids were offered a new unit, but she said the apartment is full of problems. She claims there is mold in the cabinets, a big hole at the bottom of the back door, and the lights do not turn on in the bedrooms.
"The thermostat didn't even have a cover on it or anything," Tilley said. "And the water, the water doesn't even get hot."
Several members of the Palestine community came together to help bring some relief to the young mother.
"I just wanted to know who can help out in the community and who could donate," said Palestine resident Chenetral Evans. "I asked for churches to come and help us to see how we can place these families."
Another resident Vicki Marshall said she bought the family a new furniture set.
"You can just give a little, God will increase it and he'll return it back to you in many ways that you will never know," Marshall said. "We just have to give."
Tilley is currently living at a local motel with her kids. She said she’s not ready to move in until some things change.
"If they'll just fix the apartment the right way, so I can get moved in with my kids and get situated," Tilley said.
CBS19 reached out to the Palestine Fire Department for an update on the cause of the fire. They did not release any information and CBS19 has requested an open records request. We will keep you updated on any further developments.