NYC Complaints About Blocked Fire Hydrants Have Doubled Since Covid Pandemic

NYC Complaints About Blocked Fire Hydrants Have Doubled Since Covid Pandemic

By:  Serach Nissim

Complaints about parked cars blocking fire hydrants have more than doubled since the beginning of the pandemic, as reported by the NY Post.  Critics say this surge may be due to the dwindling number of cops on the streets or the new bike lanes added.

Back in 2014, there were roughly 11,886 calls to 311 complaining about blocked hydrants.  That number has been skyrocketing.  By 2020, the number of complaints ballooned to 64,346, and every year since then the 311-call center has received over 100,000 calls specifically complaining about blocked fire hydrants, per the Post’s analysis of city data.

 In 2021, there were 105,155 complaints fielded, representing a 63.4% jump over the previous year. In 2022, the number of complaints was up to 127,751, and in 2023 the number of complaints had climbed to 134,377, per the data.  In 2024, there was a small drop in the complaints logged, with 134,026 calls too 311 about blocked fire hydrants. So far in 2025, there have already been close to 18,000 calls about this topic in just one month.

The disproportionately high number of complaints in January, may be as residents are increasingly concerned over delayed response times to fires.  Last week, New York City suffered two fires which both proved fatal.  Fire officials blamed blocked hydrants for the delayed response times.

 “We have seen two fires in the past week that have resulted in fatalities where the firefighters were unable to access the closest fire hydrant to that fire,” said Queens City Council member Joann Ariola, who is working to add  legislation to impose harsher penalties and automatic summonses for blocking fire hydrants.  “Every second counts when people’s lives are at stake, and I believe that legislation that makes penalties higher and gives citizens the ability to report those who refuse to follow the law will be a big deterrent,” the council member said.

Ariola said she is drafting a bill which would propose increasing the fine for blocking a hydrant from $115 up to $1,000.  Another bill she is proposing would allow users to submit 311 videos of vehicles blocking a fire hydrant, which would result in automatic summonses for the vehicle owners, the council member said.

As per the NY Post report, Ariola’s office conceded that the offense is a function of the dire lack of parking sports.  They pointed to Department of Transportation projects including added protected bike lanes and bike racks which have taken up much sought-after parking spots in the Big Apple, agreeing this contributes to the jump in complaints.  “People are desperate for parking,” a spokesperson for Ariola’s office told The Post. “That’s a very large increase [in complaints] … all the parking is being taken away.”

The DOT pushed back on that, responding by saying that there are about 3 million on-street parking spaces in the city. “Protected bike lanes are a proven life-saving tool that reorganizes a tiny fraction of our collective street space to make our roads safer for everyone—and neither of the two recent fires in the Bronx or Brooklyn occurred on streets with protected bike lanes or in neighborhoods with a high number of protected bike lanes,”  a DOT representative told The Post.

A resident group, named the Ozone Park Residents Block Association, also blamed the growing problem on the shortage of NYPD officers. Last week, the group penned a letter to City Hall saying the “serious citywide problem” was due to the lack of cops on the streets, which “has led to slower enforcement of parking violations.  In some cases, by the time officers arrive, the offending vehicle has already left,” the letter reads. “This is unacceptable, and it has now resulted in the potential loss of life.”

Following the deadly February 9th fire in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn – which saw “delays” in firefighting response due to two vehicles which blocked the two closest hydrants, FDNY Commissioner Robert S. Tucker made a statement.  “I’m begging New Yorkers in all five boroughs: Please do not leave your cars on hydrants,” Tucker urged.  “This is a fatal fire, and there’s no doubt that the cars that were parked on the hydrants have slowed down our members from engaging in firefighting tactics.”