{"id":124666,"date":"2026-02-06T02:07:31","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T02:07:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/124666\/"},"modified":"2026-02-06T02:07:31","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T02:07:31","slug":"ice-blanketed-sidewalk-had-these-staten-islanders-trapped-inside-until-nyc-agency-fixed-big-mess","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/124666\/","title":{"rendered":"Ice-blanketed sidewalk had these Staten Islanders trapped inside until NYC agency fixed big mess"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Residents of E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville were finally able to walk safely onto the sidewalk and move their cars Thursday, after city crews cleared a heavy blanket of ice caused by a long-standing underground leak that had made access to the street treacherous for over a week. <\/p>\n

The thick ice, caused by a long-standing underground leak, left sidewalks and driveways dangerously slippery.<\/p>\n

Freezing temperatures caused the constantly running water from the leak to solidify, leaving neighbors, including seniors and those with health concerns, unable to safely reach the street.<\/p>\n

Crews from the Department of Environmental Protection arrived around 8 a.m., removing the ice, salting sidewalks and driveways and repairing a nearby fire hydrant. Residents moved cars temporarily as mounds of ice and snow were loaded into dump trucks and hauled away.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe crew did a tremendous job,\u201d said resident Lisa Chu, 65. \u201cI\u2019m thrilled to see pavement.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IcyCrews from the Department of Environmental Protection removed ice, salted sidewalks and driveways, and repaired a nearby fire hydrant on E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)Ice trapped homeowners inside\"IcySidewalks and driveways on E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville had been dangerously slippery for over a week due to a long-standing underground leak, as of Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

The worst of the ice was concentrated near 107 and 111 E Figurea Ave., where it reached more than halfway up a fire hydrant, though runoff spread down the block toward Cortelyou Avenue. Cathy Ogno, 79, who lives nearby, described how she and her husband had been effectively blocked from safely accessing the street.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re not going anywhere,\u201d Ogno said earlier in the week.<\/p>\n

Ogno said that the ice in her driveway measured several inches thick before crews arrived. While she expressed relief at the city\u2019s response, she warned that the problem could return if the underlying leak is not fixed.<\/p>\n

Several residents said the conditions left them unable to safely walk or drive, with some vehicles becoming stuck in frozen runoff and requiring other cars to pull them free. <\/p>\n

Sanitation workers and postal carriers were hesitant to cross the icy sidewalks and driveways, residents said, citing fears of slipping and falling. This left garbage uncollected and mail deliveries disrupted along parts of the block.<\/p>\n

Gail Santoro, 67, said she and her family had not left their house since last Friday. The situation proved especially difficult for her 93-year-old mother, Lillian Santoro, who relies on supplemental oxygen. Her home health aide was unable to reach the house because of the ice, leaving her without essential care.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe couldn\u2019t get her hair washed or her bath this week because the aide couldn\u2019t come,\u201d Santoro said.<\/p>\n

\"IcyCrews from the Department of Environmental Protection removed ice, salted sidewalks and driveways and repaired a nearby fire hydrant on E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)Ongoing problem on South Shore street\"IcySidewalks and driveways on E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville had been dangerously slippery for over a week due to a long-standing underground leak, as of Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n

Residents said the underground leak has been an ongoing problem, often leaving wet curbs and minor icing during winter months, but never to this extent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been going on for years. It\u2019s just never been like this,\u201d Santoro said. \u201cEvery winter, if it rains or there\u2019s a little snow, you could guarantee in the morning there\u2019s ice.\u201d<\/p>\n

One resident, who asked that his name not be published, said water has run steadily along the block in all seasons, creating dangerous conditions when temperatures drop.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s solid ice from 107 all the way down,\u201d he said. \u201cI chopped ice on my sidewalk every single day because it just kept coming back. Eventually I said, \u2018I\u2019m not doing this anymore.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IcyCrews from the Department of Environmental Protection removed ice, salted sidewalks and driveways, and repaired a nearby fire hydrant on E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)Problem fixed; DEP on alert<\/p>\n

A DEP spokesperson said crews repaired and repainted the fire hydrant, salted the sidewalks and driveways and used high-tech equipment to scan the surrounding water infrastructure. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe area is known for groundwater, so DEP will continue to monitor to see if any other water conditions develop,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

For Ogno and her neighbors, the cleanup brought relief and cautious optimism.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the first time in days, we can actually get out,\u201d Ogno said. \u201cWe\u2019re just hoping this doesn\u2019t become the same problem all over again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IcyCrews from the Department of Environmental Protection removed ice, salted sidewalks and driveways, and repaired a nearby fire hydrant on E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Scott R. Axelrod)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Residents of E. Figurea Avenue in Eltingville were finally able to walk safely onto…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":124667,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":{"0":"post-124666","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-staten-island","8":"tag-new-york","9":"tag-new-york-city","10":"tag-nyc","11":"tag-staten-island","12":"tag-staten-island-headlines","13":"tag-staten-island-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124666","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=124666"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/124666\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/124667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=124666"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=124666"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=124666"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}