Butler condemns College Street apartment building
The Butler code enforcement office has condemned the apartment building at 109 College St. where three people were found dead of suspected carbon monoxide poisoning Jan. 7.
Butler police identified the deceased as Thomas Reges, 62, of Butler; Wendy Schettig, 48, of Butler; and Jimmy Anderson, 69, of Virginia.
Carbon monoxide poisoning is the suspected cause of death, but toxicology test results are not due for several more weeks, police said.
Two other people who were in the building were taken to Allegheny General Hospital. Another person who visited the residence a few days earlier was treated at a hospital.
Paul Wolf, a 64-year-old veteran, said he lived in the building for nine years and was hospitalized on Jan. 7.
“I started nodding off. I never do that. I got drowsy when the furnace kicked on,” Wolf said. “I went out on the porch and collapsed.”
He said he crawled to a nearby convenience store where someone called an ambulance for him.
Wolf said the smoke detectors in the building hadn’t worked for a couple years.
After he was released from the hospital on Jan. 21, he said he slipped on an icy sidewalk and suffered a broken arm when he fell.
He said he has been sleeping on a friend’s couch since he got out of the hospital, but needs a new home.
“The house is condemned. I’m homeless,” Wolf said. “I need help here. I need a place to live.”
The Butler Bureau of Fire detected “extremely high” levels of carbon monoxide inside the building. Police said the building had carbon monoxide detectors but they were disabled, possibly by the residents.
The city posted the home Jan. 10 with a notice saying the structure is unsafe and occupancy has been prohibited. The notice says the building does not comply with minimum standards of the International Property Maintenance Code, and refers to sections of the code that address a structure unfit for human occupancy and imminent danger.
A notice of violation sent to the property owner, Douglas Gerzina, of Mars, on Jan. 13 gives him 60 days to repair the structure. The owner can request an extension of time to make repairs, but the building must pass an inspection before occupancy will be permitted, said Butler code enforcement officer Kevin Dunkle. He said natural gas service to the building was shut off when he posted the property.
“The city condemned it. It was determined to be unsafe for human habitation. That could be lifted if the owner makes repairs to make it habitable,” said Butler Mayor Bob Dandoy. “It’s in the owner’s hands right now.”
The owner could not be reached for comment.
