For more than two weeks, several Williamsbridge apartment buildings have been without cooking gas, and tenants say they are getting little more than shrugs and vague timelines from building management while the bills keep coming.
Residents say the trouble started when crews could not get into a gas meter room that neighbors describe as mold ridden and crawling with rats, conditions that Con Edison says make it unsafe to restore service. In the meantime, people are relying on hot plates, paid takeout and favors from friends to get dinner on the table.
As reported by News 12 The Bronx, 55-year-old resident Riechell Hall said she first realized the gas was out over Easter weekend and that management never posted warnings or offered any kind of help. Hall told the outlet the outage is "affecting my livelihood and it's affecting my pocket and it's affecting my anxiety." News 12 also reported that two other nearby buildings are dealing with the same problem, and that staff in at least one building told tenants the gas could be off for "six months to a year" while the meter room is made safe for utility work.
Meter-room hazards blocking repairs
Con Edison policy requires safe, clear access to meter rooms before crews will touch the gas lines. That includes inspections and pressure tests before the company will re-energize anything, which means no one is turning the gas back on until the rats, mold and other hazards are dealt with.
The utility also notes that certain turn-on procedures must be done in the presence of both licensed plumbers and Con Edison staff, and that contaminated or inaccessible meter spaces slow everything down. Con Edison details those safety checks in its customer guide and stresses that cooperation from building owners is required to finish restorations.
What tenants can do
Tenants who say their landlord will not fix conditions that are blocking utility work are not stuck with cold stoves forever. They can file a housing complaint by calling 311 or using the city's online portal. The Department of Housing Preservation and Development then attempts to reach the building's managing agent and can issue violations if the owner drags their feet.
HPD classifies mold and active rodent infestations as serious violations with tight correction deadlines, and its Emergency Repair Program can step in when owners fail to do the work themselves. For immediate safety concerns, such as the smell of gas, residents are advised to call 911.
Not an isolated problem
Williamsbridge and the wider Bronx have seen this movie before. Extended gas outages and other utility failures have repeatedly upended daily life for local families.
Water-main damage in Williamsbridge left hundreds of residents without heat or hot water in 2025, according to CBS News New York. A boiler-room explosion at the JP Mitchel Houses left thousands without cooking gas for weeks, with over 3,000 Bronx residents left without cooking gas. In both cases, service restorations required multiple inspections and building-level repairs, and tenants were stuck using temporary hot plates and relying on outreach resources while the work dragged on.
The pattern has become grimly familiar: limited access, aging infrastructure and slow landlord responses combine to stretch restoration timelines far beyond what most tenants would consider reasonable.
Legal and health stakes
Under the city's Housing Maintenance Code, building owners are legally responsible for keeping common areas and utility spaces safe and sanitary. If they fail to do so, HPD can issue violations, levy fines or order emergency repairs.
Tenants who document conditions and file 311 complaints can pursue remedies in Housing Court or ask HPD to inspect and enforce needed repairs. Health officials also warn that rodent infestations and mold are not just disgusting, they are dangerous: the city Health Department notes that both can aggravate asthma and other respiratory illnesses, making prompt cleanup a public health priority. Residents are urged to report visible pests or contamination to the Health Department and through 311.
Neighbors in the Williamsbridge buildings say they want straightforward answers and immediate help as spring holidays roll through and food-preparation needs spike again. Many are pooling money for portable stoves and supplies. As News 12 The Bronx reported, tenants say management still has not posted notices or offered resources while Con Edison waits for safe access to the meter room.
