Mercy Housing to pay for flood damages at Kent’s Appian Way Apartments

Mercy Housing Northwest will pay for damages to units at Appian Way Apartments in Kent caused by flooding after a teen driver struck a fire hydrant.

“Repairs to units will be paid for by Mercy Housing,” said Nathan Box, spokesperson for Mercy Housing Northwest, which owns the apartment complex at 25818 26th Pl. S., on the West Hill.

Four units that housed 17 people were damaged Jan. 3 and had to find other places to live, Box said. Red Cross assisted with living arrangements.

Box said it was “unknown at this time” when the units might be livable again. Renters were responsible for damage to personal contents. Box said he didn’t know if they had renters insurance.

A 15-year-old boy moving a car in the parking lot struck the fire hydrant, according to Kent Police. The hydrant shot gallons of water into the air that went from the parking lot into lower-level apartments. A police spokesperson said the teen would not be cited or arrested for the incident because of his age and the incident occurred on private property.

A fire hydrant has a shut-off mechanism but the device isn’t guaranteed to work, according to the Highline Water District, which serves that part of Kent.

The apartment complex has 150 units and 600 tenants, Box said.

Appian Way Apartments are operated by Seattle-based Mercy Housing Northwest, a regional branch of Denver, Colorado-based Mercy Housing Inc., a leading national affordable housing nonprofit, and has provided affordable homes to people with low incomes since 1981. It owns 54 properties in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, and serves more than 6,000 people.