On October 17, a routine walk past a Morningside Heights cooperative turned into a fortunate act of public vigilance when a pedestrian noticed the smell of gas outside 140 Claremont Avenue and called 311 to report it. Within about 30 minutes, Con Edison arrived, discovered three active gas leaks, and as a safety precaution, shut down gas service to the entire building.

Management was notified immediately by the superintendent. Within 45 minutes, Joel Abreu, Managing Director of Total Management NYC LLC, and building manager Juan Carlos “JC” Lainez were on site to assess the situation and begin emergency planning. Having handled a similar shutdown at another property last year, the management team knew the urgency of acting within the five-day Con Edison repair window that allows testing at 0.25 psi before stricter Department of Buildings (DOB) testing standards of 3 psi apply. For a 1920s-era building, that difference can determine whether gas can be restored quickly—or whether weeks of replacement work would be required.

Emergency Action & Coordination

By early afternoon, Total Management had Controlled Combustion, a licensed NYC plumbing and boiler contractor, on site to inspect the piping and prepare a repair proposal. The proposal was delivered to the Board by 4:00 p.m. that same day. Recognizing that access to every apartment would be required, management created a key-tracking and access coordination system, verifying residents’ availability and collecting keys as needed. With help from the superintendent and several board directors, access was secured for about 95% of the units by Monday evening.

An emergency board meeting was convened on Saturday, October 18, to review and approve the Controlled Combustion proposal. Repairs began promptly on Tuesday, continuing through Wednesday.

Restoration & Results

All required documentation was submitted to Con Edison by Tuesday evening, and on Thursday, the utility confirmed scheduling of the integrity test. The test was successfully completed the following day, Friday, October 24, and by 2:00 p.m., full gas service—including cooking gas, dryers, and heating—was restored throughout the building.

The coordinated effort among management, the board, the superintendent, Controlled Combustion, and cooperative residents made it possible to restore service within seven days of the initial shutdown—an impressive turnaround for a building of this vintage.

Community & Safety First

“This was a true example of how prompt communication and teamwork can prevent a prolonged outage,” said Abreu. “Everyone—from the resident who reported the leak to the board and superintendent—played a part in ensuring the safety of the building and its residents.”

The incident underscores the importance of community vigilance, proper emergency planning, and having an experienced management team capable of mobilizing resources quickly when infrastructure issues arise.