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A National Transportation Safety Board team arrived Wednesday to investigate. The agency investigates pipeline accidents in addition to transportation disasters.
So far the building that held the Spanish Church had 120 ft of pipe replaced last year and zero violations. It was the building next door with the Piano shop that had multiple violations with the cracks in the structure and missing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors along with blocked fire exits. That building is owned by Kaoru Muramatsu, proprietor of the piano business and resident of the top floor.
Quote:
A tenant in one of the destroyed buildings, Ruben Borrero, said residents had complained to the landlord about smelling gas as recently as Tuesday.
A few weeks ago, Borrero said, city fire officials were called about the odor, which he said was so bad that a tenant on the top floor broke open the door to the roof for ventilation.
"It was unbearable," said Borrero, who lived in a second-floor apartment with his mother and sister, who were away at the time of the explosion. "You walk in the front door and you want to turn around and walk directly out."
Quote:
City records show that the building Borrero lived in was owned by Kaoru Muramatsu, proprietor of the piano business. A phone number listed for Muramatsu rang unanswered.
Records at the Department of Housing Preservation and Development indicate the agency responded to complaints from a tenant and cited Muramatsu in January for a broken outlet, broken plaster, bars over a fire escape, a missing window guard and missing carbon monoxide and smoke detectors.
The gas main that serves the area was made of plastic and cast iron, and the iron dated to 1887, Foppiano said.
"Age is not in and of itself an issue with cast iron," he said, noting that Con Edison has a cast iron replacement program and the pipe was not slated to be removed in the next three-year period.
Still none of the articles mention the biodiesel heating system for the first floor Piano business that is separate from Con Ed. I read if the storage holding biodiesel is heated to 120 degree it will explode. Do you think they are even aware of it because of where they are focusing the investigation on the gas line? It does seem like the explosion did more damage to the building next door as the piano tech was unscathed, which I find difficult to believe at that proximity when the blast threw pianos into the air and was felt all the way up to 150th street. However, the majority of the complaints for the smell of gas was coming from residents in the Piano store building who complained to the landlord.
and nobody will be held accountable of course, cuz who cares about poor people in east harlem
That part of East Harlem isn't what it was back in the 1980's. Rents along Park Avenue between 96th Street and say 125th are increasing. This is because many feel it isn't as dangerous. You see this going east to the river as well.
According to NBC news this morning an 8th dead victim has been pulled from the rubble and the man has been identified. There are still 3 missing people.
A tenant in one of the destroyed buildings, Ruben Borrero, said residents had complained to the landlord about smelling gas as recently as Tuesday.
A few weeks ago, Borrero said, city fire officials were called about the odor, which he said was so bad that a tenant on the top floor broke open the door to the roof for ventilation.
"It was unbearable," said Borrero, who lived in a second-floor apartment with his mother and sister, who were away at the time of the explosion. "You walk in the front door and you want to turn around and walk directly out."
then why didn't you????
ok fine, but why didn't he call the gas company and say, "hey I smell gas really bad". Then leave the premises and alert the rest of the tenants, on the way out.....but no, they didn't. the gas company woulf have come really fast.
I totally get a tenant opening up the roof door as to let the odor out, but to me, common sense would be call the gas company and get everyone out asap, I mean it really isn't rocket science.
It is a terrible thing to have of had, yet why are some people so dumb.
These natural selection comments are frankly appalling. The next time your kid runs into traffic I'll make sure to repeat them back to you. These people called those whom they thought would do something about it--it's documented that they called the landlord, ConEd (there was a repair last year), the FD...This is a tragedy. Stop using this as yet another City-Data platform to suck your teeth and shake your head and blame the poor. Have some damn compassion instead of desperately trying to convince yourself it couldn't happen to you as well.
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