By: Serach Nissim
The New York City Buildings Department has been slapped with a new lawsuit alleging it allows unlicensed or unqualified laborers to perform gas piping work, shrugging off safety concerns.
As reported by the NY Post, the lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court by the Plumber’s Union claims the DOB failed to adhere by a city law which upped licensing requirements for gas piping installations, passed in the aftermath of the deadly explosions in East Harlem and the East Village in 2014 and 2015. “DOB’s complete dereliction of its duty to enforce gas and welder qualification requirements has facilitated wholesale non-compliance with these safety rules throughout the City and created a public safety time bomb,” says the suit. The suit, filed by Plumbers Union Local 1, refers to a new law which went into effect in 2020 imposing restrictions on who can perform risky “gas work,” and making it illegal to do so without a DOB-issued Gas Qualification permit.
As per the Post, the complaint gives multiple examples of public projects, funded by taxpayers, for which the DOB allegedly approved illegal gas work with unlicensed workers performing piping installations, as well as cases of “unverified inspections” by contractors. In the 45-page complaint, licensed union plumbers provided affidavits claiming they witnessed shoddy workmanship being performed and workers without a “gas qualification” license. The suit adds that the DOB is also granting hundreds of gas approvals in large residential towers, schools, luxury hotels and other buildings hiring unlicensed plumbers. The union lists over 20 jobs for which the DOB allegedly permitted companies to use unlicensed gas welders, or where the DOB failed to get proper documentation. Notable developments on the list include: the recently opened Ritz-Carlton New York Nomad Hotel in Manhattan, the Mary Mount School at 115 East 97th Street in the Upper East Side, and the fully modernized 29-story office tower at 100 Pearl Street in the financial district.
The lawsuit names the DOB and its acting Commissioner Kasimir Vilenchik as defendants, and asks the court to force the DOB to comply with the safety law by requiring licensed gas work as well as the related paperwork. The suit notes that since Feb. 2021, there have been at least four gas explosions reported in city buildings. “Given the damage caused by these gas explosions, the magnitude of the catastrophe that would result from a gas explosion in a 45-story tower in Manhattan, on a densely populated block, is incalculable,” the suit states.
The DOB replied to the Post, insisting it is enforcing the safety codes. “The safety of our fellow New Yorkers is our highest priority, which is why New York City has among the most stringent gas safety requirements anywhere in the Country,” DOB spokesman Andrew Rudansky said in a statement. “DOB only issues permits for gas-related work to Licensed Master Plumbers. These plumbers are legally responsible to ensure that the permitted gas work is performed by themselves or by qualified individuals under their direct and continued supervision. New and modified gas piping work undergoes inspections and pressure testing in the presence of a DOB inspector prior to gas service being authorized. We are reviewing the lawsuit.”
