Some victims of a Feb. 12 fire that gutted two apartments and severely damaged nine others said they are upset with the treatment they have received from the manager of the complex.

Residents of the apartments destroyed in the blaze at Nittany Garden Apartments, 445 Waupelani Drive, said they were not notified before property that could have been salvaged was thrown away under orders from Keystone Real Estate Group, 444 E. College Ave.

But a realty official said residents were given the opportunity to take what they wanted before the area was cleared.

"The people were given a week to get their things out," said Mary Frantz, vice president of property management at Keystone.

Some residents disagreed.

Winquay Lin (graduate-mechanical engineering), who lived with his wife and daughter in the apartment where the fire originated, said he did not receive permission to enter his apartment after the fire and was not notified that his property was being removed.

Lin's apartment was one of two sealed off by fire inspectors to investigate the cause of the fire, Frantz said.

Byung Ha Lee (graduate-electrical engineering), who lived in the other sealed unit, also said he was not notified of the clean-up.

Lee said he retrieved some of his clothing two days after the fire but planned to return early the following week to get the rest of his salvagable belongings.

When his wife returned to the aprtment the following Tuesday, she found some of the family's property missing, Lee said.

"I am very angry," he said. "They didn't tell us they'd clean up."

Alpha Fire Chief Robert Kauffman said sealing off the scene of a fire is standard procedure. "When there is a fire like this, the building is ours until we release it," Kauffman said.

Tenants of the other nine affected apartments were allowed to enter the building to get their belongings as early as the afternoon of the fire, Frantz said.

Residents of the sealed units were permitted to sort through their possessions under the supervision of inspectors after the fire, she added.

Some tenants were taken into the units by investigators after they refused to leave the office, Frantz said.

"They really were very uncooperative," she said.

Keystone was instructed to clear the site of debris the week after the fire to avoid potential safety hazards, Kauffman said.

A general construction contractor, hired by Keystone, began to clear out the two apartments Feb. 18 -- including property left behind, she added.

Lin and Lee said they are also upset because Keystone does not claim responsibility for property lost in fire. Both men said they feel the fire was the realty agency's fault and residents should be compensated for destroyed items, but the agency disagreed.

Lin said he lost almost everything in his apartment that night.

"Everything was destroyed . . . I only took my wallet," he said.

Lin said he did not only lose necessities such as clothing, but also three years of research for his doctoral proposal.

Lin was scheduled to receive his doctoral degree in December but now that date is postponed, he said.

Lin and Lee said they did not have tenant insurance and must replace destoyed items with their own money or with donations from the Red Cross, local churches, and individuals at the University.

Only one Nittany Garden resident had insurance to cover personal property, Frantz said. The realty agency encourages all tenants to purchase the insurance, which costs about $50 to $100 a year, she added.