"New York City Reels Under Frigid Weather as Heat Complaints Soar to Record High"
A record number of residents are turning to New York City officials for help, complaining of lack of heat and hot water in their homes. The city's Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) agency reported nearly 80,000 complaints, the highest ever recorded for a single month.
The extreme cold has pushed many tenants to the brink, with some living without heat or hot water for weeks. An investigation by Gothamist found that at least one building, owned by a limited liability company, has been struggling with these issues since early last year.
The situation is particularly dire for low-income families who rely on public housing. NYCHA's Amsterdam Addition development was left without heat and hot water for days, forcing residents to endure temperatures in the 40s and fifties. "I have on an undershirt, a shirt, another shirt, a sweater and my bathrobe," said one resident. "It's very stressful because they don't know nothing."
Despite efforts by NYCHA and its added after-hours teams, many residents remain without heat or hot water. Landlords say the issue requires coordination between multiple agencies and professionals, making it difficult to address quickly.
"This isn't something a building owner can just do," said Michael Johnson of the New York Apartment Association. "Turning the heat back on usually necessitates coordination between plumbers, city inspectors and utility providers."
As the cold snap continues, officials are urging residents to look out for one another, particularly vulnerable populations like the homeless. The National Weather Service is warning that temperatures could drop even lower this weekend.
In a related concern, 17 New Yorkers have been found dead outdoors in the past two weeks, with authorities attributing at least 13 of these deaths to hypothermia.
A record number of residents are turning to New York City officials for help, complaining of lack of heat and hot water in their homes. The city's Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) agency reported nearly 80,000 complaints, the highest ever recorded for a single month.
The extreme cold has pushed many tenants to the brink, with some living without heat or hot water for weeks. An investigation by Gothamist found that at least one building, owned by a limited liability company, has been struggling with these issues since early last year.
The situation is particularly dire for low-income families who rely on public housing. NYCHA's Amsterdam Addition development was left without heat and hot water for days, forcing residents to endure temperatures in the 40s and fifties. "I have on an undershirt, a shirt, another shirt, a sweater and my bathrobe," said one resident. "It's very stressful because they don't know nothing."
Despite efforts by NYCHA and its added after-hours teams, many residents remain without heat or hot water. Landlords say the issue requires coordination between multiple agencies and professionals, making it difficult to address quickly.
"This isn't something a building owner can just do," said Michael Johnson of the New York Apartment Association. "Turning the heat back on usually necessitates coordination between plumbers, city inspectors and utility providers."
As the cold snap continues, officials are urging residents to look out for one another, particularly vulnerable populations like the homeless. The National Weather Service is warning that temperatures could drop even lower this weekend.
In a related concern, 17 New Yorkers have been found dead outdoors in the past two weeks, with authorities attributing at least 13 of these deaths to hypothermia.
. Like, I get it, heat complaints are a thing, but 80k+ residents without heat or hot water is just crazy. What's going on with the infrastructure? Is it that hard to get plumbers and inspectors together on one building? The fact that landlords have to coordinate with multiple agencies is legit, but shouldn't we be able to prioritize people's basic needs? I mean, these families are literally freezing their bums off... what kind of system allows this to happen? 
And now we're hearing about 17 people dying from hypothermia? That's just not right. We need some serious heat and action on this ASAP 
. People are making a big deal out of this cold snap and now theres like thousands complaining about heat and hot water. I mean whats the problem? Its not like they're freezing to death or anything 
. And what really gets me is that these residents are expecting some magic solution from the city or NYCHA just to get their heat back on. Newsflash, people: you gotta pay your rent or mortgage if you wanna have heat! 
heat complaints are through the roof and people are literally freezing their butts off ! like, how do we expect them to function on zero heat?! i feel for those low-income families who rely on public housing, it's just not right. why can't the city just get its act together? 
need more help from all parties involved (landlords, gov, utility providers) ASAP! 
NYC is freezing out its own people - who needs billionaires when you've got rent debt? 
The thing is it's not just the heat that's the problem, it's all the coordination that has to happen and I feel bad for these people who can't even get hot water...
that's just horrific imagine living like that for weeks & no1 seems 2 care 
nyc should really do more 2 help its most vulnerable citizens low-income families & homeless ppl r the ones who need heat 2 stay alive 
let's hope someone gets 2 solve this issue soon 
omg, I'm not saying NYC's heating system is worse than my aunt's gossip circle, but that's a whole lotta heat complaints 
! Like, what's the deal? Can't we all just get along... and have heat?! 
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That's not living, that's survival mode! 
Low-income families are already struggling so much, and this is just adding insult to injury. 
We need to come together as a community to help each other out, especially during times like these. Let's hope the city can get their act together soon and provide some much-needed assistance! 
And it's not like they're asking for much, just some decent heat and hot water to survive. I mean, come on, ppl are literally living in their undershirts and bathrobes... 
Poor NYCHA residents, Amsterdam Addition is a nightmare! What's gonna happen if the temperatures drop even lower this weekend? We need more than just coordination between agencies, we need actual solutions & resources ASAP 
according to NWS, temps could drop even lower this weekend... that's just cruel 
This isn't rocket science, but apparently, some people need help figuring that out...
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. And what about those after-hours teams at NYCHA? Are they doing enough to help the residents? 