Infants In NYC Homeless Shelters Slept Amid Vermin, Audit Finds

New York City NY

22 December, 2020

10:18 AM

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NEW YORK CITY — Vermin infestations. Rodent feces where infants sleep. Mold and mildew growing in bathrooms. Exposed electrical outlets next to cribs. An audit by Comptroller Scott Stringer uncovered those hazardous conditions, and more, for infants sleeping in the city's homeless shelters. And it wasn't just a scattered handful of shelters where such conditions prevailed. Inspectors found safety shortfalls in all 13 shelters they visited between December 2019 and March of this year. "It is a stain on this City that babies in our care are sleeping alongside vermin, breathing in mold and mildew, and playing near live electrical outlets," Stringer said in a statement. "Even one child exposed to these conditions is too many, but our audit found safety violations in 92 percent of the units we inspected. Families experiencing homelessness enter the shelter system seeking safety and stability in their time of need, and we must not allow a child's first days and months to be spent in an environment that poses a direct threat to their health and wellbeing." The 67-page report includes photographs depicting cribs near electrical outlets and sharp edges. Rodent feces littered the surface of one crib in a photograph. Indeed, infestations of rodents or cockroaches were found in 22 percent of units that had safety issues, according to the audit. Department of Homeless Services officials generally agreed with 10 recommendations offered by inspectors, but disputed many findings and argued the findings didn't take ongoing reforms into account. "The draft report also fails to recognize that many providers who were audited have proven track records of proving excellent shelter services for clients, while others are being phased out as part of a publicly reported effort to transform the shelter system by raising the bar," a DHS response included in the report states. "These are important facts that would contribute to the public's understanding of the safe sleeping issue." Stringer is running for mayor. City Comptroller's Audit On Infant Sleeping Conditions In Homeless Shelters by Matt Troutman on Scribd