NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — Dozens of public housing residents in the Bronx have been living without hot water for weeks.
Now, many fear the frigid temperatures will affect the most vulnerable people living there.
Julie Franqui says water from the tap in her apartment on East 153rd Street in the Melrose Houses should be flowing hot, but it’s not, making it impossible to do basic things at home like wash hands or bathe.
“I’ve been calling since December 4th. Lukewarm water. They haven’t done anything,” Franqui told CBS2’s Thalia Perez.
She’s not alone. There are about 140 residents who live in Building 7, and it seems everyone is affected. Dana Newman lives on the eighth floor and says it’s especially hard on her two young children and 85-year-old mother.
“Especially, like, with my mother. She has leg problems, so we have to keep the area clean. And with the cold water, we have to boil it. It takes time,” she said.
Residents say they’ve been dealing with lukewarm water coming from their faucets for two and a half months now, but recently, the water turned ice cold.
“How are we gonna wash our hands? How are we gonna sanitize? We can use cold water, but that’s really not going to do anything,” Newman said.
Residents say their complaints to management have fallen on deaf ears.
“If you call the complaint line, they’re not picking up. If you leave a message, they’re not doing anything. Who else are we supposed to call?” Franqui said.
CBS2 reached out to NYCHA, and a spokesperson said in a statement, “NYCHA staff is looking into this and making the necessary repairs.”
But residents say help to fix the hot water problem can’t come fast enough.
CBS2’s Thalia Perez contributed to this report.
