Residents evacuated from Munkebjerg Park in Odense face new uncertainty as hotels become fully booked. Many cannot return to their apartments weeks after the initial evacuation.
Mads Dissing-Larsen was temporarily housed at Aiden by Best Western Odense. Now he must leave because hotels are fully booked due to a major energy conference.
'I am very affected. I am tired of this, frustrated and irritated. I become sad because I cannot go home. I just think it is extremely hard,' he said.
He compared the situation to being treated like dogs chasing bones thrown by Barfoed Group.
Emergency evacuation of 188 apartments occurred on October 10. Structural problems with building foundations prompted the evacuation.
Residents were initially told the evacuation would last about five days. The first residents could not return until October 17.
Over 100 apartments remain evacuated according to recent reports. About 30 households are still in hotel accommodations.
Barfoed Group informed residents that all Odense hotels are fully booked October 30-31. They asked residents to find their own accommodation for those nights.
The company stated they would try to find solutions for those with no alternatives, though locations might be outside Odense.
Mads Dissing-Larsen found temporary shelter with a friend. 'I am incredibly lucky that I have a friend who has a sofa I can use,' he said.
He expressed concern about his friend's pregnant wife who could give birth at any time. This would leave him without accommodation.
'We have been thrown around for nearly three weeks now. It is totally stressful for me. I am a huge creature of habit. I need my own base where I can relax. I am really mentally pressured,' he added.
He noted many residents show visible stress and exhaustion. 'People look tired and have completely dead eyes. People do not believe anyone anymore because Barfoed constantly pushes deadlines.'
Another resident, Karoline Esborn, studies at Kold College in Odense. She must relocate to Comwell Middelfart hotel, significantly farther from her school.
'There is damn far to school suddenly,' she commented.
She described the period as frustrating with insufficient information from Barfoed Group. 'We have missed some more information than half ambiguous answers.'
Esborn expressed broken trust in the company. 'I do not want to spend a single night in my apartment when we come home. Barfoed Group has long said everything was good, but now the trust is broken.'
Many residents want to terminate their leases according to Danish Tenants Association director Jørgen Dyrholm Jensen. 'There are quite a few tenants who want to cancel their leases,' he said.
He explained tenants should have cancellation rights without three-month notice periods under these circumstances. Barfoed Group disagrees with this interpretation.
'These people cannot even get permission to move out of the lease relationships reasonably unscathed. When Barfoed Group says 'no', it can only be recognized if you bring a lawsuit against them,' Jensen stated.
He described the situation as 'an eternal circus of unreasonableness' for tenants trying to maintain normal lives and work.
Odense Municipality acknowledges the problem's severity. City Development Chief Birgitte J.K.T. Nielsen said the municipality works to return residents home quickly.
'We are also maximally pressured. We also want those residents home, but there are some safety things that must be in order. And Barfoed also wants that. We are fighting against time,' she explained.
The municipality insists on certified fire safety consultants rather than basic fire technical notes. This ensures professional and legal responsibility.
'It is a guarantee that things hold. It is the best guarantee we can get as a municipality. Barfoed Group tries to find a way that makes citizens return quickly without compromising safety,' Nielsen concluded.
Barfoed Group declined to comment when contacted.
The ongoing accommodation crisis highlights how corporate communication failures can exacerbate already stressful situations for displaced residents. Clear timelines and transparent safety assessments would help reduce the uncertainty plaguing affected families.