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SILVER SPRING, Md. — Roughly 1,000 people and pets were forced out of their apartments Wednesday afternoon after a burst pipe caused flooding, power outages and road closures. A spokesperson for the fire department says there is no timeline for when those living at the apartment complex in Wheaton can return to their homes.

Fire and rescue crews spent several hours at the Arrive Wheaton apartments responding to what was first reported as a water issue. According to Pete Piringer, a spokesperson with Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services, crews first got to the scene in the 11200 block of Georgia Avenue in downtown Wheaton of around 11:30 Wednesday morning.

Once on scene, crews found an estimated 300,000 gallons of water in a sub basement from a broken water pipe on the property. The flooding caused significant utility issues, but the flooding was contained in to the large basement area.

About five or six feet of water had completely submerged utility closets in the area, so power was shut off to the building and surrounding areas out of an abundance of caution, according to Piringer.

Utility and fire crews worked to pump the water out of the building, however, a building inspector deemed the apartment complex unsafe to occupy, forcing all 500 apartment units to be evacuated. Piringer estimated roughly 1,000 people and pets were evacuated.

"Around 5:30 or so, the Housing Authority and Code Enforcement condemned the building," Piringer said in a video posted to X, formerly Twitter. "They don't have power, electricity, elevators aren't working, they don't have lights, water, heat ... Obviously people cannot sleep here tonight."

Warming buses were called in to help residents forced out of their homes. It is not clear when power will be restored to the building and when those who live at Arrive Wheaton will be able to return to their apartments.

WUSA9 has reached out to property management company for Arrive Wheaton, Redtail Residential, but have not heard back.

Several tenants at Arrive Silver Spring tell WUSA9 that rats are a problem in the building.

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA) has placed the Arrive Apartments in Silver Spring on formal “notice” following multiple tenant complaints of a rodent infestation reported on Nov. 14, according to the agency.

The designation requires the property’s management company to conduct a full search and seal of affected areas, and begin drill-and-dust treatments throughout the building to address rats.

Several tenants told us they have seen rats inside their units but declined on-camera interviews, citing fear of retaliation from management. Many said they have reported problems before with little improvement.

During a visit to the complex on Monday, prospective renter Drew Layton said he arrived from Missouri for a scheduled apartment tour only to find the leasing office closed.

“The leasing office had a sign that said it would open back up at three o’clock, but our tour was supposed to be at 2:30,” Layton said.

He later learned the tour had been cancelled and heard about possible rodent issues.

“I think I dodged a bullet,” he said.

In a statement, DHCA spokesperson Matt Cournoyer confirmed that after receiving complaints and conducting inspections, the county condemned one unit in the building and ordered management to immediately address rodent issues, including rat burrows found on the property grounds.

During our visit, dozens of rodent bait boxes were seen positioned around the complex.

Matt Losack, executive director of the Montgomery County Renters Alliance, says renters have a right to prompt action when health or safety concerns arise.

"My reaction whenever I see a rat, vermin, mold, cockroaches, or bed bug infestations is: What is the response by the property management?” Losack said.

He notes that tenants are legally protected from retaliation.

“If a landlord says if you complain to us about not receiving your rights or required services, we’re going to evict you — that’s against the law,” he said.

Losack advises tenants to report issues directly to property management first and expect a timely response. If that does not happen, residents should call 311 to file a complaint with the county.

DHCA said it is providing temporary relocation assistance to affected tenants at Arrive Silver Spring. Inspectors will evaluate all 882 units beginning December 10 to ensure the property is complying with county regulations.

WUSA reached out to Arrive for comment and has not yet heard back.

Families and religious leaders in Silver Spring, Maryland, believe the remains of dozens of people are likely buried beneath the parking lot of a shopping center.

The Seminary Place Shopping Center on Georgia Avenue is now home to an Aldi grocery store, a closed-down car wash and other shops. But from 1825 to 1963, dozens of people, including some formerly enslaved families, were buried there near a church.

Rev. Will Ed Green of Silver Spring United Methodist Church said the remains of only six people were officially moved when the property of the Mt. Zion Methodist Episcopal Church cemetery was sold in 1964.

Green and other church leaders believe at least 38 people's graves were never relocated.

Church leaders read the names of the missing ancestors aloud and said prayers during a reconsecration ceremony at the parking lot Wednesday morning.

"It became known to the leadership of Silver Spring that individuals have been buried here, that this had been a burial ground that had been desecrated. And the burial ground contains remains of many of those who were enslaved," Bishop Latrelle Easterling, the leader of the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church, said after the ceremony.

As Methodist churches in the area worked to solve the mystery, a road improvement project along Georgia Avenue presented a unique opportunity.

The Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) and Silver Spring United Methodist Church hired surveyors to use ground-penetrating radar devices to investigate any evidence of burials underneath the parking lot.

"We have good reason to believe that there could be people who were left behind here and that’s who we’re trying to find," said Lisa Kraus, a senior archeologist with the Maryland SHA.

"If there’s something down there, like a piece of a casket or hardware or something like that, that’s going send a little indication," said Steve Archer, assistant division chief of the cultural resources section of SHA.

Paulette Smith Dawes attended the reconsecration ceremony and believes it's possible her great-great grandfather is buried there. She said she's been searching for his grave without success.

"Just knowing that all these years, all these years, that they could very well have been just right here. Right here," she said.

Smith Dawes said if his remains are discovered, she'd be OK with letting them stay at the site of the old cemetery.

"I’m OK, I’m OK with that. It’s just the knowing and the peace. It’s like a closure," she said.

If graves are discovered on the land the state bought, surviving descendants will be able to give input on whether or not those graves should be moved.

But it's unclear what would happen if graves are discovered on the property that is privately owned.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (7News) — Montgomery County parents say they're shocked about a plan to close a middle school and relocate an elementary school in Silver Spring.

If a plan proposed by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) Superintendent Dr. Thomas Taylor goes through, Silver Spring International Middle School could be closed in five years.

The superintendent wants to move students out of Sligo Creek Elementary and build a new school.

A video shows what MCPS was planning for Silver Spring International. MCPS documents detail plans for an addition that would feature new gyms and locker rooms at a cost of nearly $16 million.

Now, Taylor said those plans are on hold due to infrastructure problems at the 90-year-old building that was once Blair High School.

In an email to the Sligo Creek Elementary school community, which was posted by the Parents' Coalition of Montgomery County, Maryland,

Taylor said the school system's "best attempts to upgrade the facility have been thwarted by unforeseen building conditions and structural issues that far exceeded projected costs."

Taylor plans to build a new Sligo Creek Elementary School in the fall of 2029 at another site in Silver Spring.

He wants to close Silver Spring International Middle School in August of 2030 and use both schools as holding sites for MCPS students who attend a school that's undergoing construction.

Parents told 7News they need more information about the superintendent's plans and shared their concerns with school board members at an Oct. 23 meeting.

"We really need to understand the planning, so we don't lose money, we're not in endless construction, we're not in an unsafe environment?" said Sligo Creek Elementary PTA Co-President Rosarie Tucci.

Christine Reklaitis, who serves in the same position, told board members, "The timeline is incredibly challenging. This is the densest part of the county so selecting a site in a place where you can design, landscape, build, and get community support in three and a half years might not be realistic. What does the site selection process entail?"

Megan DiNicola is President of Silver Spring International's PTA and said, "We've been advocating for these issues but we thought these were repair or replace issues, not a full closure of our community and what we want to understand is how we got to this point and is it really in the best interest of our community or not."

"We understand that we're getting a new school which is very exciting but the details of where that's going to be and the three-year timeline to get that selected and constructed also feels incredibly ambitious," said Tucci.

Taylor acknowledges that his timeline is ambitious and says a new site for Sligo Creek Elementary would need to be selected this spring.

In his message, he told the community,

"Here are our immediate next steps:

Beginning with the Board of Education work session on November 4, we will provide more details about the facility analysis that brought us to this decision, and the facility projects and supports we will implement for both schools;

We will schedule in-person school community meetings;

We will provide responses to the questions you submit in the Questions or Concerns Form; and

As we move forward, we will continue to communicate with you regularly as we make improvements to the current building and plan for any transitions."

The Board of Education has scheduled several public hearings and work sessions on the capital budget on the following dates:

Tuesday, Oct. 28, 6 p.m., Capital Budget and Capital Improvements Program (CIP) Hearing

Tuesday, Nov. 4, 10 a.m., Capital Budget and CIP Work Session

Thursday, Nov. 6, 6 p.m., Capital Budget and CIP Work Session

Tuesday, Nov. 11 (if necessary), 10 a.m., Capital Budget and CIP Work Session

Here's how MCPS answered some of our questions about parent concerns:

Q: Will MCPS provide additional information meetings beyond what is currently on the calendar to answer community and parent questions?

A: MCPS has several CIP public meetings/work sessions currently scheduled before November 20to discuss the Capital Improvements Program.

Q: Will MCPS leaders visit the two schools and walk parents and community members through your detailed plans?

A: Superintendent Taylor has already begun outreach. He held a Zoom meeting with the Silver Spring International Middle School community on October 13 to preview his recommendation for the school's closure before formally submitting it as part of the district’s 2027-2032 CIP. The Superintendent is committed to engaging further and will meet with the community again (date to be determined) to listen to their feedback and discuss the detailed plans.

Q: How do the plans align with boundary studies?

A: All proposed facility changes, including those involving closures and holding schools, are interconnected with and inform boundary studies. These studies are necessary to determine student assignments for the new or reconfigured schools.

Q: Has MCPS considered other nearby structures for holding facilities?

A: "The district has limited options for structures that are suitable and immediately available for use as school buildings.

Liliana López

Public Information Officer

Montgomery County Public Schools"