EXCLUSIVE: News 12 gets inside look at NYCHA apartment left severely damaged after fire
While the fire caused extensive damage to the apartment, the family says they had been dealing with another problem long before the flames - a persistent bathroom leak.
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A fire broke out Monday night inside a NYCHA apartment at the Lester Patterson Houses on Morris Avenue in the Bronx, leaving a family displaced and raising concerns about unresolved maintenance issues.
Margarita Torres was cleaning her kitchen when she heard a loud bang that frightened her family. Her 8-year-old granddaughter then got out of bed, opened the bathroom door and came face-to-face with flames.
Firefighters helped Torres, her daughter and her niece escape the apartment. Torres' daughter was later taken to the hospital and treated for smoke inhalation.
While the fire caused extensive damage to the apartment, the family says they had been dealing with another problem long before the flames - a persistent bathroom leak. Torres says a water leak has been an ongoing issue, dripping onto the floor.
Torres says they submitted multiple maintenance tickets through NYCHA’s website over several months about water leaking inside the bathroom. They say the tickets were repeatedly closed without repairs being made.
Even after the fire, the sound of dripping water could still be heard inside the apartment.
The family is currently staying at a hotel while NYCHA has located another apartment for them in the same building. They say they are still waiting to learn what the next steps will be.
NYCHA has not commented.
