Karim Ammam, the parking attendant at Mediterranean Foods supermarket, has a growing collection of rocks that have fallen onto the sidewalk from the overhead bridge over the years. Photo by Iryna Shkurhan
July 12, 2024 By Iryna Shkurhan
Local residents are growing increasingly concerned about falling rocks from the deteriorating Amtrak railroad bridge on 23rd Avenue in Astoria.
After witnessing a larger-than-usual rock fall from the bridge at the intersection of 36th Street last month, two local residents cordoned off the area with yellow tape and a wood pallet out of concern for passersby. They also printed out and put up signs that read “Danger debris falling overhead.”
The action came months after hundreds of local residents upvoted a post about the issue in the r/Astoria thread on Reddit. The original post was shared the day after a 4.8 magnitude earthquake shocked the region. It quickly collected dozens of comments from concerned locals expressing fear of debris falling while walking underneath the arches and tracks.
Local Astoria resident Brian Muller captured photos and videos of fallen rocks before Amtrak investigators cleared them from sidewalks beneath the bridge. Photo by Brian Muller
“They’re sharp and pointy. Definitely fast enough to kill someone,” said Brian Muller, a longtime Astoria resident who lives close enough to the bridge to have captured a video of a rock plunge onto the sidewalk with a thump.
Muller was one of the local residents who cordoned off the area after growing more worried about someone getting hurt after seeing the video. The rock has since been removed from the street by Amtrak inspectors, but he says it weighed about 10-15 pounds.
He began noticing falling debris collected on the sidewalks and various points along 23rd Avenue over a year ago. Since then he has called 311, various lines at Amtrak and 911 to reach the local fire department most recently.
And while he did not notice the earthquake worsening the amount of rocks and debris on the ground, locals worried that its effect would not be immediate. It is partly because the falling debris does not always coincide when trains are passing overhead dozens of times each day, making the threat unpredictable.
“If you’re underneath at the wrong time, you’re done,” he said.
A block down from where Muller witnessed the large chunk fall, underneath Mediterranean Foods ll on 35th, the issue has been ongoing since the Greek supermarket opened in 2015.
Karim Ammam, one of the parking attendants who helps shoppers navigate the tight parking lot in front of the store, has been collecting rocks that have fallen on the sidewalk from the overhead bridge since he started the job four years ago.
Near the tin hut for attendants, where he says he goes to hide sometimes when trains pass, he has dozens of jagged rocks of various sizes on display. More recently, the collection also acquired a large bolt that he said fell right on the corner of 23rd Avenue and 35th Street at the beginning of this month. It almost hit the owner’s son on the head, prompting the owner to call his lawyers and explore legal action against Amtrak.
Ammam has rocks of various sizes on display near the parking attendant hut in front of the supermarket. Photo by Iryna Shkurhan
“I know exactly where they fall, so I’m hiding all the time here,” said Ammam, pointing to the hut. “I want to make sure I’m safe.”
The parking attendant who worked there for years before him started the collection, and Ammam has kept up the practice of picking up the rocks after they fall, almost always on the sidewalk.
He noted that out of the other points where there is a pattern of falling debris, the sidewalk in front of the supermarket receives the most foot traffic. Hundreds of people walk past each day.
“Mostly, I’m scared for the kids—the moms with the strollers. The cars are okay cause it’s material. But the kids and the old people, I don’t want anything bad to happen,” Ammam said.
Other employees at Mediterranean Foods said that falling rocks and bolts have damaged more than one car belonging to a customer over the years. But they are forced to tell them that there is nothing they can do.
The store manager keeps the largest bolt that they have seen fall inside the store for safekeeping as the owner explores legal action. Photo by Iryna Shkurhan
The employees and local residents have seen Amtrak inspectors, clad in orange vests, come by and look up at the bridge. Sometimes they will take pictures, and put in a work order. But as Muller and Ammam both pointed out, “nothing changes.”
The Amtrak Northeast press office did not respond to multiple requests for comment and inspection results from the Queens Post.
Muller’s calls to 311 also went nowhere, as he learned that the bridge did not belong to the city. It is one of 1,414 bridges privately owned and operated by Amtrak, which is primarily located in the Northeast.
“They need to fix their bridges because if someone gets injured or, god forbid, killed, then it’s on them. And I don’t want to see that happen,” said Muller, who says he wants to see barricades or warning signs put up if steps to fix the infrastructure aren’t taken.
Local residents blocked off the area in an attempt to warn passersby of the safety issues, but Amtrak inspectors took down the blockade. Photo by Brian Muller
For the 2023 fiscal year, Amtrak made its largest investment yet, $3 billion, to fund new trains, improved stations, new tunnels and bridges and other upgrades to critical infrastructure over several years in capital projects. However, their senior press officer did not confirm whether the Astoria bridge was on the waiting list for repairs.
According to information from the office of Council Member Tiffany Caban, who represents the district, Amtrak dispatched an engineer to conduct sounding tests on high-concern areas at their request. They also removed unstable pieces of concrete that were at risk of falling and cleared the accumulating debris from the sidewalk.
But in terms of making local residents feel safer, Muller gives credit to FDNY Engine 263/Ladder 117 on Astoria Boulevard, which responded to his 911 call. At the beginning of the month, firefighters utilized their truck ladder to remove the majority of the loose concrete on 23rd Ave and 36th Street.
“It’s really telling when the FDNY is willing to respond and do more than Amtrak to prevent avoidable injury and death,” he said.
Along with removing the “evidence” of falling rocks, he said Amtrak inspectors also removed the caution tape he and his neighbor put up. He took that as a sign that they now consider it safe for people walking by.
“It’s an improvement but not a solution,” Muller reflected, feeling safer now after seeing the FDNY do the work he expected from Amtrak.
“They were able to just remove it with their bare hands, without any drilling or anything. They were loose enough to have fallen down.”
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One Comment
this is why we have local law 11. it’s supposed to prevent this from ever happening. clearly FDNY needs to come in with summons and violations.