SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) — Shreveport water crews resolved an issue at an apartment complex where people have been living without water for the past month.

Councilwoman Tabatha Taylor said this is not the first time the Villa Norte apartment residents have been subjected to unhealthy living conditions – the city had to rectify a situation two years ago in 2021.

Shreveport mayor Tom Arceneaux said the city was dedicated to getting the water working as soon as possible.

Residents living at Villa Norte said it was hard living without any running water.

The City of Shreveport declared a public health emergency for the residents living at the Villa Norte apartments – claiming the owners of the private complex threatened their residents’ quality of life.

Shreveport’s water and sewer teams fixed the water issues at the apartments on Tuesday.

Mayor Arceneaux said it’s a shame to see landlords failing to take action to keep water flowing for their residents.

“Great praise goes to our water and sewer employees who diagnosed the problem—fixed the problem in a matter of just a couple of hours. So obviously, it was something that could’ve been done and should’ve been done by the management of the apartment complex,” said Mayor Arceneaux.

Arceneaux says they are looking at ways to prevent situations like this from happening in the future and are looking into potential legal remedies.