Police probe multiple manhole entries in Long Island and New York City
Nassau County police are investigating reports of people entering a manhole in Wantagh, while similar incidents have been documented elsewhere in New York, prompting city authorities to warn of legal and safety risks.
Police in Nassau County are investigating reports that several individuals entered a manhole at the intersection of Wantagh and Jerusalem avenues in Wantagh, Long Island, early Thursday morning. Officers received calls from witnesses around 1 a.m. and arrived to find the manhole empty, with no reports of anyone emerging.
The incident follows other documented entries into underground sewer openings in New York City. A video verified by the NYPD showed five people climbing out of a manhole near West 31st Street and Seventh Avenue at approximately 4 a.m. on Tuesday, some wearing dark clothing and headlamps. In May, witnesses observed groups of seven or eight people entering manholes in Gravesend and Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and emerging hours later.
The NYPD has not announced any arrests and says investigations are ongoing, while it remains unclear whether the events are linked. The city’s Department of Environmental Protection notes that unauthorized entry into the sewer system is illegal and can expose individuals to hazards such as toxic gases, unstable surfaces and flooding.