Fatal gas explosion in Sunnyside

As Ruth C. Haupert-Lengemann stood in front of her Sunnyside home, surveying the damage from a gas explosion that killed her neighbor on Thanksgiving eve, she was overcome with grief.
“These are the most wonderful people,” she said of the Oza family who has lived in the home attached to Haupert-Lengemann’s for nearly 30 years. “I’m heartbroken.”
Haupert-Lengemann, who had traveled to Richmond, VA., for the Thanksgiving holiday, had heard about the explosion, which killed 67-year-old Kunta Oza, on the news, but only after returning to 41st Street on Friday, November 23 could she see the extent of the damage.
Her own home remained cordoned off with police tape, and windows of the Oza house were boarded with plywood. Charred appliances lay in the front garden where 70-year-old neighbor Austin Hernandez once planted sunflowers for the Ozas, and several bouquets of flowers and tall candles were positioned on the front steps and surrounding sidewalk in memory of the grandmother.
“No matter what happened to my house, I’m not worried because that can be fixed,” said Haupert-Lengemann, “but this wonderful woman did not deserve to die like this.”
On Wednesday, November 21, local residents along 41st Street and 49th Avenue reported a strong smell of gas about 3 p.m., and fire trucks rolled onto the block soon after, said 47-year-old Francis Cianfrocca, who lives on the corner.
“The gas mechanic who responded to the call followed company procedure and tested the ground around, and the air inside the building, where the odor was reported. FDNY had also checked for gas inside 48-15 and found no gas,” said a Con Edison spokesperson in a statement.
At 4 p.m., the fire trucks started to leave the scene. However, at 4:30 p.m., firefighters were called back to 41st Street to remove cars that were parked over a manhole.
“Before the mechanic could get access to the manhole, a fire erupted in a different home, two doors away from the one that had reported the odor,” according to the Con Ed statement.
Cianfrocca compared the sound of the blast to big sheets of plywood hitting the pavement. “It’s not the biggest sound I’ve ever heard,” he said, explaining that he went outside immediately after.
“There was no flame coming out of the house, just a lot of smoke,” he said, “Then they brought the woman out.”
Kunta Oza was transported to New York-Weill Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan to be treated for burns, and she died on Thanksgiving Day.
According to Con Ed, crews worked through the night to restore gas service to 41st Street.
City Councilmember Eric Gioia questioned the utility company’s initial response to the reported leak; saying that the scent was so strong residents evacuated their own homes that afternoon.
“There are many serious questions that need to be answered about the explosion that led to Mrs. Oza’s death,” Gioia said in a statement. “My heart goes out to the Oza family, who has shown great dignity and courage throughout this entire ordeal.”
By Thanksgiving Day, most of the 200 evacuated residents were allowed back in their homes and others like Norma Porfido, who lives a block down on 41st Street, made other arrangements, deciding to eat with friends. Two days later, loved ones packed a Saturday service at Lynch Funeral Home for Kunta Oza.
“She certainly will be missed,” Haupert-Lengemann said, later wondering aloud the fate of her own home, where she has lived for more than 70 years. “I’m going to be nervous going in there.”