FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM MAY 18, 2017 • THE QUEENS COURIER 3 Lucky ducks helped by cops in Flushing On Mother’s Day, offi cers from Flushing‘s 109th Precinct worked to reunite a small feathered friend with its mom. In events chronicled on the precinct’s Twitter page on May 14, Offi cers Schintzer, Campanelli and Vlaovich were fl agged down by a passerby and told of a small duckling that had fallen into a drain. Th e trio of offi cers quickly got to work, removing the grate and searching for the baby in the muck. Successful, the precinct tweeted “All’s well that ends well” with a photo of the mother duck and her babies reunited. Suzanne Monteverdi Cops warn about rental scams in NE Queens Cops alerted Flushing, Whitestone and College Point residents who may be apartment hunting to rental listing scams in the area. Inspector Judith Harrison, commanding offi cer of the 109th Precinct, asked attendees at the precinct’s Community Council meeting on May 10 to tell their friends and neighbors: if a rental listing sounds too good to be true, it probably is. “We have so many scams we’re combating,” Harrison said. “IRS scams; lottery scams. But now we’re seeing a lot of rental listing scams.” Residents should never complete an application or make advanced payment prior to actually seeing the listed apartment, cops said, and be wary when “agents” ask for wired money. If you believe you have been a victim of a rental scam, report it immediately to the NYPD by calling 911. Suzanne Monteverdi Get ready for a dumpling contest in Flushing Do you and your best buds have what it takes to win 1,000 dumplings? On May 21, Dumpling Galaxy in Flushing will host an eating contest that tests your palate; not the size of your stomach. Teams of one to six foodies will be given a complete list of possible ingredients and will be asked to identify three in each dumpling in a multi-round competition. Aft er three rounds, winners will be crowned. Grand prize is the chance for you and three friends to enjoy up to 1,000 dumplings within a two-hour time period at the restaurant on a future date. Th e event will be hosted by Angelis Nannos, culinary curator and food guide, and take place from 3 p.m. until 5 p.m. Tickets are $35 a person and must be purchased in advance here. Rules are subject to change. Dumpling Galaxy is located at 42-35 Main St. Suzanne Monteverdi START DOING YOUR JOB! State Senator Tony Avella stands near the sinkhole on Union Street at 32nd Avenue. Pol demands that city fi x Flushing sinkhole BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76 What’s it going to take for the city to fi nally repair a big sinkhole in Flushing? Th at’s a question state Senator Tony Avella posed last week while standing near a substantially sized sinkhole at the intersection of Union Street and 32nd Avenue that fi rst appeared years ago. Avella told reporters at a May 11 press conference that he has reached out to the city Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) multiple times about the situation dating back to last August, but has not yet received a response. Now, he said, the problem has expanded and the site has grown more dangerous. “I’m really worried there’s gonna be a serious collapse here,” the senator said. According to Avella, the city Department of Transportation (DOT) inspected the site on Aug. 12 and issued a “Corrective Action Report” to DEP. Still, Avella said, the problem remains. “Th e ground underneath is eroded, so there’s very little holding the road up,” the lawmaker said. “Th e sewer must be broken underneath and leaking and the water just erodes the ground.” In his most recent letter addressed to DEP Acting Commissioner Vincent Sapienza and Mayor Bill de Blasio, Avella pointed out that the location is a major thoroughfare, with buses, cars and pedestrians passing through on a constant basis. Th e intersection is also near to a school, park and pool club, the Photos: Suzanne Monteverdi/THE COURIER lawmaker pointed out. “It’s only a matter of time before the sinkhole causes a major accident,” Avella wrote. Th e senator closed the strongly worded letter by taking a shot at the city administration as a whole. “Unfortunately, it is no surprise that this administration is unable to address many of New York City’s signifi cant issues, if it cannot even repair a sinkhole,” the letter noted. “On behalf of all New York City residents, please start doing your job.” “Th e sewer in the vicinity of Union Street and 32nd Avenue is being inspected using a remotely operated television camera and, once that work is complete, any necessary repairs will be made,” a DEP spokesperson told QNS on May 15.
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