FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM SEPTEMBER 9, 2021 • QUEENS BUSINESS • THE QUEENS COURIER 31
Queens Business
following extensive damage due to Hurricane Ida
this scale for years.
“Some merchants have said this is
worse than Sandy, in terms of western
Queens,” Bean said.
Cynthia Iglesias, who owns La Adelita
on Roosevelt Avenue in Woodside with
her mother, Maria, was still trying to
mitigate the devastating disruption the
storm caused as of Thursday afternoon.
Their restaurant’s basement flooded
with sewer water Wednesday night as
the storm raged on outside.
“I was upstairs. I knew it was running
outside, but this is something that
typically doesn’t happen in New York,”
Iglesias said. “I don’t think I was prepared
enough, but I’m subscribed to
organizations to know what’s going on
with mandates and guidelines.”
Iglesias had to be on FaceTime with a
plumber who couldn’t get to them due
to the weather, in order to try to fix the
issue. The water seeped into their large
cooler and the food inside, which they
later had to throw away.
She also “risked her life” trying to
disconnect appliances in the submerged
basement, so as to not cause
a fire.
“It was a really long night,” said
Iglesias, whose basement apartment
nearby also flooded. She’d been in the
restaurant all night and day.
The New York City Department
of Buildings sent out an advisory
Thursday, warning building owners
that heavy flooding conditions have
the potential to cause structural damage,
hazardous mold and deterioration
of building electrical and gas plumbing
systems. These conditions can pose
a serious hazard to New Yorkers entering
flood-damaged buildings.
All New Yorkers are encouraged to
call 311 to report any unsafe building
conditions in their neighborhood, and
911 for emergencies.
For Iglesias, the recent damage is
just another blow in an already difficult
year. In January, she had to close
another restaurant in Long Island City,
Corazon de Mexico, as the landlord
refused to re-negotiate a $20,000 lease.
That debt along with recent pandemic
related violations from the health
department, coupled with close to no
aid from the federal government’s programs,
leaves Iglesias feeling less and
less motivated to be in the hospitality
industry, she said.
“We’ve been struck down in so
many ways, me and my mom,” Iglesias
said. “Food has increased 200%, and
expenses don’t end. But my mom says
to stay positive.”
In Astoria, Beatrice Ajaero is also
remaining positive, as she assesses the
damage to her two businesses: Nneji, a
restaurant on 34th Avenue, and Ibari, a
shop on 23rd Avenue.
Ajaero said that while Nneji “weathered
the storm,” the same couldn’t be
said of Ibari.
Ibari, located on the ground floor
of a 100-year-old building, is a quaint
The roof of a cleaners business in Ridgewood
collapsed during the remnants of Hurricane Ida.
shop with a basement for storage.
Ajaero, who lives on Roosevelt Island,
found the basement submerged in 7
inches of water on Thursday morning.
“The property owner said there
had only been three floods, two of
them this year,” said Ajaero, clarifying
that one of those floods came as a
result of Hurricane Henri nearly two
weeks ago. “It was more severe this
time.”
Ajaero said it would have been beneficial
for her and other business owners
to have a more clear message about
the kind of damage that a storm like
Ida could bring, in order to prepare.
“August to September is always a
critical time. The last thing you want is
some sort of weather problem,” Ajaero
said. “If I could have wished this one
away, I would have. We didn’t need
another hurdle.”
Ajaero, who also said it will take time
to assess all the damage, said her commercial
and residential neighbors continue
to lend each other a helping hand
where possible.
“You might for a second think it’s
isolated — my space, my issue — but
then you go up and see people are also
going through it,” Ajaero said. “People
are giving words of compassion to
acknowledge we’re all affected by this.
A car parked while rainwater fl oods parking lot in Bay Terrace Shopping Center. It’s encouraging to see.”
/WWW.QNS.COM
