NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Several military families living at Ben Moreell Military Housing, formerly known as Lincoln Military Housing, reached out to 10 On Your Side with concerns regarding recent power outages and car break-ins.
“The break-ins are getting worse. It started out with kids checking the handles, seeing if the cars were unlocked. It has progressively gotten worse, to now they are using crowbars and smashing in windows,” said Pádraig-Eóin Dalrymple, a military spouse.
Many of the military members and spouses said they are afraid of retaliation, so they shared information anonymously.
“It’s absolutely terrifying,” said a military spouse. “We do lock our doors. We do take everything out and it doesn’t matter. People are getting really frustrated and it is getting violent, and people are tired of it.”
A neighbor told 10 On Your Side he was recently shot at when he confronted someone trying to break into cars.
“It’s getting to a point where someone is going to end up getting killed, one way or another, because we all feel like sitting ducks and we can only do so much.”
Families said management has been notified on multiple occasions and they are not doing enough about it.
In addition, the neighborhood lost power for 14 hours on Tuesday during the hottest time of the year.
“A lot of people, if not the entire neighborhood, had to throw out a lot of food and a lot of people are on a single-income,” said Dalrymple.
10 On Your Side reached out to the Liberty Military Housing property management about the issues.
“The safety of our residents is our top priority, and our team is working diligently with our Navy partners to ensure all of our residents are living in a quality home environment,” said a spokesperson.
Read the full statement below:
As a result of an unforeseen power outage onboard Naval Station Norfolk, LMH recently experienced a power outage at one of our communities, Ben Moreell. In addition to the updates from the Naval Station, LMH teams relayed those updates through our RedFlag emergency notification system. LMH also opened our clubhouse to provide residents with a comfortable place they could cool down and charge their phones, to include providing refreshments and food to ensure our residents were as comfortable as possible. The base CO and Regional Vice President were there to greet residents and answer any questions.
Liberty Military Housing property management
Additionally, we have recently experienced multiple car break-ins, and while the Norfolk Police Department (NPD) has responsibility for patrol and law enforcement in this community, LMH has immediately enhanced our neighborhood courtesy patrols to increase awareness and presence. LMH has provided NPD with our full cooperation and assistance in the course of their investigation. We are confident that NPD will make every effort to thoroughly investigate these crimes and continue its outstanding record of ensuring the safety of our military families. As always, if a resident suspects that suspicious activity has occurred or is occurring, we ask that they contact the police immediately by calling 911.”
Continue to check WAVY.com for updates.