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Belle Glade tenants evicted days before Christmas

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Dozens of people have been forced out of their homes after Belle Glade city leaders condemned their apartment building due to unsafe conditions.

Tenants got the unexpected news Thursday morning.

It's a sad sight to see on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd in Belle Glade.

Derrick Kirksey and dozens of others spent the day packing.

"Came in at 8am and ordered us all out," says Kirksey.

City leaders put red signs around the apartment complex telling tenants to be out by 6pm.

"I'm very angry because it puts you in a bad situation," he says.

City leaders say they gave the property owner plenty of warnings to fix the place up.

"Electrical, plumbing, one side has light, one side does not," says Glorida Akins who is helping tenants move out.

We reached out to the property owner who is currently out of state. He says he fixed all the problems and the city did not give him enough warning before Thursday.

Meanwhile the city is putting tenants up at several hotels.

The property owner says he plans to return to Belle Glade to fix the issues and get tenants back in their homes.