Dozens of residents at a Kaufman apartment complex are looking for a new place to live after a deadly balcony collapse Saturday.
Residents said the Windtree Apartments handyman started doing work on the balconies without telling residents. Residents said they removed several metal support ribs from the concrete balcony and didn't complete the job.
"I just saw them working on it, and then they didn't finish evidently, and they packed all their stuff up and went home," said Brandy Collins, who lives across from Jose Martinez Hernandez's apartment.
Martinez Hernadez died Saturday when the balcony he loved collapsed. The fall was more than 10 feet.
Neighbors said liked to drink a few beers on the balcony.
"It just sounded like a big crashing boom, like something falling," said Chris Ramirez, a nearby neighbor. "When we looked over there, it was like concrete hanging down over there, and there was one big piece. It was really big."
Elias Martinez, the victim's nephew, said the family is in shock.
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"I just don't want it to happen to anybody else. Be careful," he said.
City inspectors looked over the balconies of several of the apartments and deemed more than two dozen of them unsafe.
Residents have 48 hours to find a new place to live.
"I have two kids, so wherever they put is us where I'll have to be," Collins said.
Residents identified a man named Arturo as the owner of the complex. He declined to comment.
A spokesman for the city of Kaufman said the collapse is under investigation.
