It’s been 48 hours of chaos for hundreds of residents at the Concierge Apartments in Rocky Hill. The freezing cold temperatures over the last two weeks in Connecticut caused broken pipes and flooding in multiple buildings.

On Thursday, residents in two of five buildings had to be out by midnight due to frozen sprinkler systems. Now, according to a letter sent to residents in the remaining three buildings, all residents had to be out by midnight.

One resident, Ryan Callahan, and his family were part of the second wave of evacuations. They said the property has had issues going back for months, but recent conditions crossed the line.

Residents had been without heat and/or hot water for days. The initial damage, before the evacuations, prompted a scathing letter from Attorney General William Tong and local leaders to the apartment’s management company. Tong also criticized the company’s initial refusal to pay for other accommodations for residents seeking shelter before the mandatory evacuations were in place. The letter also criticized the company’s lack of communication and transparency with the residents.

In total, about 600 units were affected. Rocky Hill Mayor Allan Smith said renters were being put up in local hotels, but those were also causing some strain due to the demand.

NBC Connecticut reached out to the property owners, JRK Property Holdings, for a response, but hasn’t heard back yet.

However, the company did get back to Tong’s office.

In the letter, the company said that it has spent millions on improvements to the buildings since acquiring it in 2013, and that there “are currently no open violations or citations relative to plumbing.”

The company insists that all units currently have heat and running water and said that, despite reports of widespread heating loss, “only four of 500 units experienced heating loss.” They acknowledge that they were aware of 61 units with at least one fixture lacking hot water. The company said it expects repairs to be completed by the end of next week.

Despite Tong stating such in his initial letter, the management company said they did not see a basis for allowing tenants to break their leases.

Tong released a new letter responding to the management company on Friday, saying in part:

Your response is worse than tone deaf, it is callous. In this extreme cold – projected to be -2 and -3 degrees, respectively tomorrow and Sunday – your response could at best be characterized as indifferent,” the letter states. “Whether your client spent $22 million in the past or expect to spend $2 million now proves only one thing — Concierge Apartments has clearly not done enough to keep these residents safe and honor the legal and ethical obligations to them and their families. No doubt Concierge has put a price on their safety and whatever that price is decided to be is wholly inadequate.

It is unconscionable to demand that tenants, who are mostly working people now struggling to put a roof over their heads during the coldest stretch in recent memory, honor their contractual obligations to a Los Angeles-based real estate empire that boasts $15 billion in real estate assets under management in 23 states. This is particularly appalling when Concierge itself may be shirking their legal and contractual obligations. I am hard pressed to believe that a Connecticut court would see it any other way – and I anticipate that a Connecticut court would strongly consider these contracts to be voidable. This catastrophe has made Concierge, and its shadowy web of ownership interests, the posterchild for everything that is wrong with private equity owning a stake in basic goods and services.

In the meantime, residents can file a claim with the Rocky Hill Fair Rent Commission here.

The attorney general’s office said it is exploring “all legal options and expects to take additional action in the coming days.”

Friday will see a good amount of cloud cover and calm winds as temperatures lift into the 30s.

A few flurries are possible this afternoon before a steadier snow picks up through tonight.

1-3″ of snow is expected through Saturday, but the best chance for those higher totals will be in eastern Connecticut.

NBC Connecticut

NBC Connecticut

Winds could gust up to 40 miles per hour through Saturday as temperatures fall.

Wind chills could be as cold as -30 degrees through late Saturday and early Sunday.

Frostbite can form within 20-30 minutes of exposure in these conditions, so limit time outside this weekend.

High temperatures will warm back into the 30s by Tuesday.

The House of Representatives voted Thursday to continue an emergency fund to offset federal funding cuts, but not before a discussion of decorum.  

Rep. Matt Ritter (D-Speaker) started the proceedings by reminding members that they’re not to display political messages inside the chamber while the House is in session.  

He was responding to Rep. Cara Pavalock-D’Amato (R-Bristol), who was wearing a jacket on opening day with a message of support for federal immigration agents.  

“My advice to everybody out there is don’t test me on this,” Ritter told reporters before the House session started.  

Ritter noted punishment could include censure, impeachment, or even expulsion, although he said his intent Thursday was simply to warn people not to violate the rule.  

Rep. Vincent Candelora (R-Minority Leader) said the jacket was in response to comments from Gov. Ned Lamont (D-Connecticut) that he felt were also too politically charged.  

Lamont said during his speech, “ICE… everywhere you go, uninvited, violence follows. Go home, we’re keeping Connecticut safe without you.”  

Candelora said he wants all leaders to tone down the rhetoric.  

“I wish the governor had checked himself before he made those statements,” Candelora said. “Any time you speak in absolutes, the way he did, it’s really offensive.”  

Pavalock-D’Amato told reporters she didn’t regret her decision.  

“I respect the speaker, definitely, but again the governor has the floor, and we have – there’s a way for us to speak during that speech, so I don’t have any regrets whatsoever,” she said.  

After talking with reporters, Pavalock-D’Amato met with Capitol police to discuss a threatening text message she received on Thursday.  

Ritter said he wanted to make it clear no one is allowed to have political messages in the chamber, adding he’s told House Democrats to remove pins, buttons, and other items that violate the rule.  

The bill passed with a 97-48 party-line vote, clearing the three-fifths majority required under the fiscal guardrails to create an account outside the budget with surplus fund money.  

It’s now headed to Lamont, who has voiced his support, after garnering a 28-8 vote in the Senate on Wednesday.  

The bill continues Lamont’s control over $313 million remaining in an emergency fund lawmakers created during a special session back in November.  

They originally set aside $500 million to respond to federal cuts, with Lamont declaring a fiscal emergency that ended when the legislative session began Wednesday.  

Lamont extended that declaration, but Republicans say the legislature should reassert its power of the purse now that the session has started.  

They also questioned the need for the emergency fund, calling it a slush fund for a governor seeking re-election.  

“We are under very different circumstances, our SNAP benefits, our LIHEAP, our government programs from the federal level are funded through September, so this fund is wholly unnecessary,” Candelora said.  

Democrats feared that more federal cuts could happen without minimal notice. They argued that Lamont is able to respond more quickly than the legislature.  

“Right now, when we worry about childcare, we worry about healthcare, we worry about housing, multiple things – homeless, food share, we’ve got to have a quick turnaround,” Rep. Toni Walker (D-New Haven) said.