For over ten years the Thach family lived in their home on South 5th Street and Greenwich in South Philadelphia. That all changed however, after they say a mistake from a worker cost them everything.
A contractor told the family of eight that one of his workers accidentally broke a water line at a construction site next to their home, sending water inside the property. The entire site was compromised by flooding and the home was condemned and deemed unsafe by Licenses & Inspections a day later, forcing the family to move out. According to L&I, the home is now on the verge of collapse.
“They didn’t want us inside the house at all,” said Lin Thach.
Yet while the contractor, Rodney Mazzoni, admitted his worker made a mistake, he also claims he wasn’t entirely responsible for the home’s poor condition.
“Just because the incident happened now doesn’t mean there wasn’t a problem before,” said Mazzoni. “I admit there was five inches of water in their basement. That was my fault. But five inches of water doesn’t take down a house.”
Andrew Baratta, the Thach family’s attorney, begs to differ however.
“The house has been standing for 130 years,” said Baratta. “It just happened to be a coincidence that the next day after all this water damage occurred, it was condemned?”
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The family is currently living in a small, rented space on South 4th Street and have filed a lawsuit against both Mazzoni and the extractor.
Ut Son, the mother of the family, says she cries "almost everyday" when she thinks about no longer having a home. It's a reality that she and the rest of the family will have to live with as they brace for what will likely be a long and drawn out court process.
