Bronx tenants left without light, heat take action

Tenants in a Morris Heights apartment building have decided to take their landlord to court because they say they have been without heat and hot water for weeks. The tenants in the building are overwhelmed

News 12 Staff

Feb 6, 2009, 12:04 AM

Updated 5,692 days ago

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Tenants in a Morris Heights apartment building have decided to take their landlord to court because they say they have been without heat and hot water for weeks.
The tenants in the building are overwhelmed with emotions of anger and fear of their living conditions. Without heat, they say the temperature has gotten so cold that icicles have started to form on the ceiling inside the building. Tenants say that it's not only dangerous to live in the building, but the conditions have also created a health hazard.
"It's very dangerous in here!" neighbor Luis Correa says. "These people are waiting for a tragedy to happen. You can actually die in these apartments it's so cold."
Neighbors have been forced to boil water in their apartments in attempt to provide heat for themselves. Residents have spoken to the manager, who has not been named at this time, about the problems.
The tenants have also been without lights, worsening the conditions further. They have had to use the light on their cell phones to make their way around the building.
"The landlord doesn't want to show his face!" Carmen Valentin says. "They keep saying the truck is on the way to fix this, but it never gets here."
The outraged tenants say they were informed the reason nothing has been done to fix the issues is because not all neighbors were paying the rent. The residents are now done leaving messages for management and have decided to take the issues to the courtroom.