PORTLAND, Ore. -- It’s hard to imagine living without heat, but that's what 55 residents of a downtown hotel were dealing with during the Arctic blast Wednesday.

The City of Portland ordered the manager of the Stewart Hotel to pump heat into the hotel or pay for hotel rooms for all of its residents.

Mutlnomah County human services got a call that the boiler broke about ten days ago.

Residents pay around $445 a month there. Portland police took five people to hotels on Wednesday.

With cameras rolling KGW asked Stewart hotel manager Mike Narver about the problem.

“Well, we're working on it, when a boiler breaks, its hard to replace. We're working on it trust me,” he said.

They are going to bring a space heater outside to blow hot air inside the building.

On Thursday a temporary boiler will be placed underneath. The city promised that this building will have heat.

(KGW Reporter Anne yeager contributed to this report)

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