NYCHA public housing heating crisis

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - The saga continues for many residents of New York City Housing Authority-owned buildings who have endured another day without heat. Residents of the Wagner Houses in East Harlem are struggling to keep warm.

Tenant Charisse Wilson said her apartment hasn't had heat in weeks so she is running her oven for heat.

The conditions in some NYCHA buildings have persisted for more than a week. Fox 5 has reported from different NYCHA complexes throughout the city. Now, these residents are demanding something be done.

We tried to get answers from the mayor Tuesday morning.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said that the housing complexes have suffered from a lack of tens of billions of dollars in investments over decades. He said that the situation can't change overnight. He called this an "imperfect situation" but gave NYCHA credit for dealing with the ongoing problems.

City Comptroller Scott Stringer, who recently audited NYCHA, agreed with the mayor about the lack of funding. But he pointed out that the authority's full financial picture isn't clear. Stringer's office found that NYCHA has boilers with a defect rate at five times the citywide average.

De Blasio said the city would do what it can to support residents.

NYCHA told Fox 5 that about 90 percent of its residents have heat. That means about 60,000 residents of public housing do not have adequate heating.