WORCESTER, Mass. - Residents of the Elm Park Towers seniors-only housing complex will be able to return to their homes starting Wednesday. A planned phased return for residents will continue through Friday.

Nearly 200 residents were forced out of their homes when a pipe burst in the building during a record-breaking cold snap in February. The damage to the electrical system was beyond repair and a complete replacement was needed.

Worcester Housing Authority CEO Alex Corrales said this was the first time in his 27 years at the housing authority he's had to evacuate an entire building and he hopes it's the last.

"It is something that we've prepared for, we've trained for it and we've talked about what happens in these emergencies and we do have a plan," Corrales said. "But it's not something that we wanted to execute on that type of weekend.

"Nevertheless, it's been a lot of work from our maintenance team, our modernization team, to our residents service, property management, all of these folks are working around the clock. They're driving to the hotels every day to check in on our residents and making sure they're okay."

Corrales said they'll work with residents to make sure they have what they need as they settle back into their apartments. Staff have already notified residents about the day and time they'll be allowed to return.