Two months ago, Dean Estates tenants lost their homes in a flood. Are lawsuits coming?

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect the fact that the property is managed by Winn Management, not Winn Residential. It has also been updated with the full statement from Winn Management.

CRANSTON – An attorney representing tenants who were left homeless after September's catastrophic flooding at the Dean Estates apartment complex is warning that lawsuits could be on the way.

"We will do all we can to make sure my clients are made whole," attorney Ken Schreiber of Schreiber & Schreiber said at a Friday news conference at the Cranston Public Library.

The 24-unit apartment complex on Oaklawn Avenue was deemed uninhabitable after 12 feet of water entered the building during a rainstorm on Sept. 10. Most of the residents are "solid blue-collar people" who live paycheck to paycheck, Schreiber said. Many still haven't found a place to live, or they lost all their possessions.

"There’s no insurance for 90% of these people," Schreiber said. "For the other 10%, there wasn’t enough."

Struggling to find housing, plagued by nightmares

Among the tenants who spoke to reporters after Friday's news conference was Querida Tate, who said she'd spent the last two months living in a hotel.

"Here we are, $17,000 later," she said. "All my money’s gone. I’m lucky I have $200 in my bank account."

Another former tenant, Cara Simeone, said she'd been having recurring nightmares about the flooding.

After losing her apartment, she said, she moved in with her boyfriend. But there wasn't room for her two teenage sons, who are living with her ex-husband while she hunts for an apartment that she can afford on her salary as a teacher's assistant.

"Every time that I drop them off, I feel really sad," she said, her voice breaking.

Tenants signed releases in exchange for gift cards

As The Providence Journal previously reported, Dean Estates' management refunded residents' September rent and security deposits after the flood. That was an "admirable thing to do," Schreiber said. However, he said, they were also offered $250 or $500 preloaded debit cards if they agreed to sign a release.

"Just the fact that a release was there is unconscionable," Schreiber said. "These are not lawyers; these are lay people."

Schreiber said that none of the tenants received a copy of the release, so it's not clear exactly what it said. But he said that the argument could be made that they were not of "sound mind" because they so desperately needed the money.

He called on Winn Management, the property management company for Dean Estates, to "show real compassion" and rip up the release forms.

Speaking to a reporter after the news conference, Simeone said that she regretted signing a release but didn't feel she had a choice.

"I needed money," she said. "I don't know what else I was going to do, you know?"

Attorney says goal is to avoid a drawn-out court case

Schreiber said that his goal is to get more compensation for his clients, and that anyone who could be held legally liable for the disaster should sit down and "start getting involved in negotiations immediately."

His hope is to avoid "a long, drawn-out court case" because many of the displaced tenants are elderly and "don't have the time to litigate this case for 10 years," he said.

He specifically named Winn Management, alleging that the Boston-based property management company "misled" potential tenants about the condition of the property, and said that the apartment complex had not been maintained properly over the years.

Ed Cafasso, a spokesman for the company, refuted those allegations. In an emailed statement, he said that the flooding "was caused by unusual torrential downpours, which overwhelmed nearby storm drains located off property" and that the law firm was making "false statements." The company’s full statement can be found below.

Schreiber also suggested that past or present owners could be potential targets of a lawsuit. "If it takes suing everyone in the chain of title, we’ll do that," he said.

However, he said, the property sold earlier this year, and it's not yet clear if that transaction involved any indemnification agreements that could potentially shield the owners from legal risk.

An ongoing lawsuit involving the city, state and former owner of Dean Estates has already been making its way through the legal system since the first major flooding in 2013.

Full statement from Winn Management:

“The news release from Schreiber & Schreiber contains several false statements. Winn Management operates Dean Estates Apartments on behalf of the owner, Merowitz Properties. Since the September 10th flooding, we have been working to clean up damage and make repairs, where possible, and to keep the storm drains on the property clear in advance of rainy forecasts. The flooding was caused by unusual torrential downpours, which overwhelmed nearby storm drains located off property. Unfortunately, access to damaged apartments continues to be prohibited for safety reasons at the direction of the Cranston Building Department. We sympathize with residents whose lives were disrupted by this unfortunate natural disaster, and we appreciate how the Cranston community has stepped up to help them.”

NOTE: Ken Schreiber writes a freelance sports column on college football for The Providence Journal.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Dean Estates flooding could prompt lawsuits by homeless tenants