Just when you thought everything was going smoothly on the Second Avenue subway, work on the delay-plagued tunnel just cost 100 families their dinner — and breakfast and lunch, too.
On Oct. 6, a contractor working on the subway mistakenly turned off a gas line instead of an electric line. His mistake meant over 100 units in the George Washington Houses have been without gas for 10 days and counting.
“This was an inexcusable mistake on the part of the contractor working on the Second Avenue Subway project,” said an MTA spokesperson.
To make matters worse, the New York City Housing Authority originally told residents they would be without gas for two months, potentially through Thanksgiving, while they replaced aging gas valves. The Housing Authority now says they aim to turn the gas back on in the next week.
Residents have had to make do with portable heating elements or takeout. “I’m really upset. We don’t know how long it will be out for,” said Dereck Nesbit, 50, who said he’s been cooking with a hot plate for the past week.
“And that’s expensive. I used to cook a lot. I’ve gotten down to cold cuts right now,” said Nesbit. “They’ve been outside my apartment working on this [subway] for three to four years. They drill all day.”
Tenants will be reimbursed today for their eating expenses, said an MTA official.
