SYDNEY, N.S. -- One of the best-known buildings in Sydney, N.S., has been without power for more than 10 days and some of the tenants who live inside Cabot House say they've been in the dark when it comes to finding out what's going on.
"This is the 11th day without electricity," said Ian McNeil, who lives on the 13th floor of what is recognized by many as the tallest building in Sydney.
He says, from spoiled food, to no internet for people working from home, some of the 200 tenants have been affected enough that they have moved out.
For those who remain, he says the combination of power outage and pandemic -- combined with Tuesday's 30 C temperatures -- have made things more than a little uncomfortable.
"Many seniors find it difficult in the heat," McNeil said. "There's no opportunity to plug in a fan, much less air conditioning."
The building's owner, Killam Properties, tells CTV News the cause is a main electrical distribution failure.
It's a major fix that they say will take 10 to 12 weeks just for materials to be delivered.
Temporary repairs are underway, but McNeil says this is among the first communication many tenants have received from the company.
"We're left to feel like we don't matter," McNeil said.
Derek Mombourquette is the area's MLA. His office also happens to be inside Cabot House.
He says he met with the landlord Tuesday and they've committed to meetings in the building to address individual tenant circumstances.
"My message to them really was that as much information that you can get to the residents, the easier it is going to be for them to make decisions," Mombourquette said. "So, at this point right now, really what I'm looking for is the results of those meetings to determine what they're going to do to support the residents that live there."
A spokesperson for Killam Properties tells CTV News that power is expected to be restored by July 24 for floors 10 through 18 and by the end of the month for the second to ninth floors.
A spokesperson for Service Nova Scotia says, to date, no complaints have been made with the residential tenancies program in regard to Cabot House and that landlords must comply with all provincial and municipal laws respecting standards of health, safety and housing.
McNeil says while he and many others have tenant insurance, they don't know what -- if anything -- they'll be compensated for.
He is one of the tenants who are considering moving out.
"I'll be evaluating this," he said. "I have 'til the end of the month and their response will have a lot to do with any decisions I make."
The landlord says tenants still have hot water and their elevator and life safety systems are working, thanks to a generator.
Meanwhile, they say they've hired a cause and origin expert to determine what led to the power failure.
