What to Know
- FDNY fire prevention inspectors checking a tip about a collection of e-bike batteries posing a potential hazard, discovered 40 migrants sleeping in a Queens basement behind a furniture store, according to three city officials and the landlord himself.
- Upon entry to investigate the reported fire risk at the South Richmond Hill home on Liberty Avenue, inspectors were surprised to find the migrants in cramped conditions, the officials said.
- Further investigation revealed that 74 individuals had been living in the basement, reportedly sleeping in shifts to accommodate everyone, according to the landlord, who spoke with NBC New York.
FDNY fire prevention inspectors checking a tip about a collection of e-bike batteries posing a potential hazard, discovered 40 migrants sleeping in a Queens basement behind a furniture store, according to three city officials and the landlord himself.
Upon entry to investigate the reported fire risk at the South Richmond Hill home on Liberty Avenue, inspectors were surprised to find the migrants in cramped conditions, the officials said. The city Department of Buildings ordered Sarr's Wholesale Furniture vacated due to “severe overcrowding and hazardous fire trap conditions," spokesperson David Maggiotto said Tuesday.
Further investigation revealed that 74 individuals had been living in the basement, reportedly sleeping in shifts to accommodate everyone, according to the landlord, who spoke with NBC New York.
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According to the Department of Buildings, when inspectors arrived on scene, they "found that the first floor commercial space in the building and the cellar had been illegally converted into sleeping quarters, with 14 bunk beds and 13 bed tightly packed on both floors." Additionally, inspectors found that plumbing work was done without permits and there was no means of exiting, ventilation or natural sunlight for the migrants living there.
Officials said the FDNY issued a vacate orders for the premises. The DOB also issued a vacate order due to unsafe conditions found at the basement, including overcrowding and fire hazards identified by the FDNY. The city's Office of Emergency Management (OEM) referred people in need of shelter for further assistance.
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The DOB issued two violations to the landlord — 132-03 Liberty Avenue Management Corporation — for illegal work without a permit and for occupying the two-story mixed-used building contrary to city records.
The shocking discovery came after a neighbor called 311 to report e-bikes parked near the side of her property and FDNY inspectors looked into that complaint. The neighbor told NBC New York she was scared for her and her family's safety due to the recent fires that broke out due to defective lithium-ion batteries that garnered headlines.
"One morning I came out here to go to work, I see about 20 e-bikes," said the neighbor, who did not wish to be identified. "I just couldn't do it no more. People running in and out of there, I haven't gotten a wink of sleep."
The neighbor said she believes the unsanctioned migrant shelter had been running for at least two months.
Ebou Sarr, a migrant himself who runs the furniture store, said he felt sorry for the migrants, most of whom are from his native Senegal in West Africa and were trying to make a living in the U.S. — but had difficulty finding a shelter after the city limited the amount of time that single migrants can stay in city-run shelters to 30 days.
Although they can reapply for shelter at a reticketing center in the East Village, the landlord said the migrants he was helping were tired of waiting and sleeping outdoors and this was the best option he could provide for them. The landlord stressed that the city was simply not providing another alternative for the men who had nowhere else to go.
He said he accepted money from them when they could pay, but he didn't charge them rent.
"When they started coming to me, telling me their stories, I started helping them. I didn't want to do it. I thought about it twice," said Sarr. "It broke my heart but I'm proud of them, they're all hard-working people."
He added that the basement shelter had rules, like no cooking on-site. Residents paid what they could each month for a place to sleep, and got breakfast, lunch and dinner provided by Sarr.
“They’re my people. I have to do something about it, so I started taking them in,” Sarr tearfully said outside the shop. "The city is saying they have no place for these people. It's not true."
One migrant who lived in the basement said he slept on the subway Monday night and wasn't sure where he'd be able to go Tuesday night.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams addressed the issue Tuesday afternoon, saying the city "cannot create desperate situations." The city said it would offer the migrants a ride to a place in the Bronx where they can wait for a new shelter bed. Other migrants said they were calling friends and anyone else they knew to find a place to spend the night.
The landlord continued to tell NBC New York that the basement with beds was the best he could provide. The migrants apparently slept in shifts and had access to only two bathrooms, although the landlord said he was in the process of finding porta-potties to better accommodate the migrants.
The city's OEM which has been operating the city's emergency shelter system for migrants, said it is assisting the now displaced tenants.
The discovery came amid an influx of migrants that has strained the city's shelter system.
