QUEENS (WABC) — A person was seen emerging from a manhole in Queens early Monday, adding to a series of incidents involving people entering and exiting sewer systems across New York City.<\/p>\n
Police reported that at about 4 a.m. Monday, someone was seen coming out of a manhole at the corner of Juniper Boulevard South and 74th Street in Middle Village. No arrests were made.<\/p>\n
“From what I’ve heard from through the grapevine Monday, is that somebody came up and there may have been some other people waiting with them, possibly,” resident Danny O’Neill said.<\/p>\n
A surveillance photo from the scene shows a police vehicle responding to the location.<\/p>\n
The incident occurred at an intersection bordered by residential homes and gardens on one side and a popular playground on the other.<\/p>\n
“It’s kind of scary for, like, all the kids, especially, like, what could be going on, what they’re doing. They can have like a whole factory under there and we don’t know,” O’Neill said.<\/p>\n
Another resident expressed concern about the situation.<\/p>\n
“I would say one who’s in charge of the underground. Right. And what are we going to do about it? Right. Especially for the citizens in the neighborhood,” the resident said.<\/p>\n
This is not the first time people have been spotted going in and out of manholes.<\/p>\n
Last month, three people climbed out of a manhole near Penn Station<\/a> during the predawn hours. They are still being sought.<\/p>\n In May, there were sightings in Gravesend and Williamsburg. Four people were arrested and told police they were scavenging for valuables.<\/p>\n Also in May, in Queens, three people wearing protective gear were seen going down a manhole and closing it behind them.<\/p>\n In August, surveillance video caught a group of people opening a manhole cover in Wantagh<\/a> and descending into the sewer system.<\/p>\n The incidents have left some residents questioning what may be happening beneath city streets.<\/p>\n “I remember there’s a book that I read not too long ago called Mole People all about how there were communities when people who moved underground here in New York,” a resident said.<\/p>\n The city Department of Environmental Protection noted that entering the sewage system without authorization is both illegal and dangerous.<\/p>\n Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News<\/p>\n