Residents of Salina senior facility face sweltering heat, medical issues from storm fallout

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - Much of Salina has been dealing with power outages following major storms on Monday.

Late Wednesday afternoon, power was restored to Johnston Towers, a senior residence.

The six-story building was without power for two days, making staircases dark and elevators non-operational while temperatures inside continue to rise.

“I’s never been this bad,” resident Vickie Jackson said.

Residents like Jackson have medical devices that require power.

“I have oxygen that I need all the time; a breathing machine and stuff that needs to be charged,” Jackson said. “...And I can’t even do that.”

With temperatures above 90 degrees in much of the state, the heat became unbearable even indoors.

“It’s hard for me to breathe right now,” Johnston Towers resident Roxie Mauk said. “I don’t have enough air going through -- cool air.”

Maux lives on the sixth floor, making her ability to leave even more difficult.

“Am I going to be up here today, tomorrow, what?” Maux said. “Still without air conditioning. I’m feeling like I’ll have ... the fire team take me down the stairs.”

The owner of Johnston Towers, Mark Gillam, brought in flashlights to light the staircases and generators to get some cooler air into the building.

“It’s truly the whole city of Salina that has had one of the largest infrastructure hits anybody’s seen in Salina’s history,” Gillam said. “And while bringing in four generators that power single-family homes -- which is the largest we could get our hands on this morning -- it still feels like we’re using a garden hose to fight a wildfire.”

Finally, relief came Wednesday afternoon when power was restored.