More Hot Amateur Video, South Slope Style
A little illegal Sunday afternoon asbestos removal with your morning coffee courtesy of Knockout Construction? How ’bout some night-time footage of a worker with no protective gear smashing a chimney by light of a generator, all with no sheds or barriers to stop debris from raining down on the street and neighboring yards? When it…
A little illegal Sunday afternoon asbestos removal with your morning coffee courtesy of Knockout Construction? How ’bout some night-time footage of a worker with no protective gear smashing a chimney by light of a generator, all with no sheds or barriers to stop debris from raining down on the street and neighboring yards? When it comes to allowing a repeat offender with hard evidence against it to continue to flagrantly violate the law, we just can’t see how there’s any explanation other than some kind of corruption within the DOB. Incompetence and cronyism can only explain so much.
338 22nd Street–Illegal Work Part 1 [YouTube] GMAP
338 22nd Street–Illegal Work Part 2 [YouTube]
338 22nd Street–Illegal Work Part 3 [YouTube]
Destroying the Evidence on 22nd Street [Brownstoner]
Flouting the Rules Again on 22nd Street [Brownstoner]
Anon 5:32
1. On the front of the house, 2 signs said “WARNING: ASBESTOS REMOVAL IN PROGRESS.” Sorry I couldn’t videotaped that just for you. And the suits, gloves and respirators on a “few” of the workers made it obvious, even if you did not see the signs.
2. It was roof demo and abatement…that’s why they are on the roof, not the interior. Did you watch any of the videos.
3. There was tons of noise, dust, debris, etc.
4. glad you are an expert. I have done a gut reno as well…and I know what an illegal tear-off looks like. Unfortunately I have witnessed too many of them. I assume you disposed of your basement in a professional manner…just like this crew.
5. I do have a job. These videos were taken on a SUNDAY, again, have you watched the videos?
6. And finally, my “ambition” is to make sure my hood and neighbors are safe from scumbags like these guys. This is a repeat performance, no the first time. And, likely not to be the last.
Any further questions?
Anon 5;32 lets hope your retired cause you don’t know shit. Demo guys are dumb shits to begin with other wise they would have been in one of the trades. Swinging a sledge hammer is not rocket science as the video shows.
• Some roofing and siding shingles are made of asbestos cement.
• Houses built between 1930 and 1950 may have asbestos as insulation.
• Asbestos may be present in textured paint and in patching compounds used on wall and ceiling joints. Their use was banned in 1977.
• Artificial ashes and embers sold for use in gas-fired fireplaces may contain asbestos.
• Older products such as stovetop pads may have some asbestos compounds.
• Walls and floors around wood burning stoves may be protected with asbestos paper, millboard, or cement sheets.
• Asbestos is found in some vinyl floor tiles and the backing on vinyl sheet flooring and adhesives.
• Hot water and steam pipes in older houses may be coated with an asbestos material, or covered asbestos shielding or tape.
• Oil and coal furnaces and door gaskets may have asbestos insulati
this shits gotta stop..and I mean the video taping of nonsense. who said this was asbestos removal? and why would they bring it to the roof? gut reno yes, and so what, it didn’t sound like they were making major noise. I’ve done hundreds of guts in my day, and the only place i found asbestos was the basement. if this guy video taping had a job he wouldn’t have the time or ambition to waste his time taping.
Dear Lost in Brooklyn (and Brownstoner)
I recommend that you try a new approach, rather than the continuous pleading with 311 and the DOB that you do on a weekly basis. It seems obvious that the DOB is the enemy, as they are corrupt – they do not care about what is happening in our neighborhoods.
Since you have intimate knowledge of, and, more importantly, video documentation of this illegal demo (and subsequent threat to the public health and safety due to asbestos fibers being released) why not go after Knockout Construction with a lawsuit? In fact, why not start a class-action suit from all of the neighbors in Greenwood who may have been subjected to asbestos dust, against Knockout Construction and these other goon contractors? I’ll sure as hell join in – I’ll bet 90% of all homeowners in this area would participate.
The other thing that should be done is to inform OSHA that the workers are at huge risk to do this kind of work (and most are probably immigrants and/or ignorant of the danger they are exposing themselves to. OSHA would shut those guys down fast, so stop calling the DOB. They are not going to help you.
And while you’re at it, sue the DOB commissioner, Marty Markowitz and Michael Bloomberg for not taking control of the situation. This MUST STOP. It is absolutely inexcusable. It’s probably safe to say that the cops are involved too. (look at the 16th street situation with the ex-cop/developer. No cops would come to the aid of the folks who tried many times.)
It’s nonsense that homebuyers pay crazy-ass taxes on properties in the “New” Brooklyn and yet are expected to put up with such a huge threat to personal health and safety.
SUE KNOCKOUT CONSTRUCTION. I guarantee this bullshit will stop if you win a suit, which I think would not be that hard to do.
M-F: 7am to 6pm (after that you need a variance permit to work till 8pm)
SAT: Variance permit needed-10AM to 5PM
SUN: Not permitted
AND the rub with folks who work after hours or on weekends illegally is the freekin’ variance permit is approx. $150. Seems like a good deal to me to get an extra 7 hours in on a weekend.
We have a site on 6th Ave (the tree killers) who have pulled a weekend permit every weekend since the fall. PITA for the neighbors, but legal.
But alas, most of these boys don’t often play by the rules 😉
What are the permitted work hours for M-F and for Saturday?
Unfortunately tear-down 101 in our ‘nabe is “tear the roof off” (legally or illegally), remove the windows, the let the fun begin.
The majority of the frame houses in the area, well kept up or run down, have old school roofing material (my house included). If you do the job right (and I have seen many that were not done right) you get an abatement company to come out.
They set up a “clean room” for the workers (who are in coveralls, gloves, ventilators and hoods, like some of these boys appear to be, not all), you wet down the surface (to keep the dust down) and begin removing the material, bagging it in special haz-mat bags. From there the bags are lowered into the “safe room” re-bagged (sometimes washed off) and loaded into a sealed truck or haz-mat dumpster. When the guys are finished, the goto the “safe room” to remove and bag their clothing and shower off any dirt & dust.
From what I observe rewatching the videos, this was not done. No “safe room,” one guy with no gear at all (he was the chimney man) and the bags are being thrown into the back of a semi. Piss-poor and dangerous removal all the way around.
Can’t wait to see the demo.
And, no sidewalk shed and construction fence to protect the neighbors, who I hear watched in horror…
anon 11:37 am
The obnoxious is this is NOT a house being renovated, it’s a tear down. They lied to DOB stating there was no asbestos on the property in their demo application, then run an illegal abatement move during a long weekend with all Dept. offices closed for MLK.
This is a repeat performance from December. Do your homework before you open your mouth.
And when I reno’d my house, we didn’t even work on Saturdays, let alone Sundays.
Illegal all the way around, no matter how you look at it…which obviously you have not.
How does he know they are removing asbestos?