Talk about a sinking feeling!
Greenpoint resident Philippa Kaye was passing Flatbush and Fifth avenues on her way from the New York City Marathon on Sunday when she encountered a hole in the sidewalk so massive it swallowed her whole.
Yes, as these shocking photos show, that’s Kaye up to her waist in pavement. Yes, the hole is about three-and-a-half-feet deep.
“The fact that it had no cover or anything on it to warn people was unique,” she said. “It should be dealt with immediately. At night, someone can really break their leg.”
After we sent the Department of Environmental Protection photographs of Kaye in the ditch, inspectors were dispatched to the scene on Monday.
An agency spokeswoman said workers found a collapsed back plate in the catch basin. On Tuesday, a repair crew got to work.
Businesses in the area said the city certainly took its time, as the ditch has been there for about a month.
“It has just become part of the landscape,” said Anika Beech, the manager at Northeastern Network, a medical office at Fifth and Flatbush avenues. “If an adult body can fit in there, imagine if a child falls in.”
