What’s News, Breaking: Monday, March 11, 2024

March 11, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

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BISHOP BRENNAN WILL OFFER
MASS FOR CRISIS IN HAITI

FLATBUSH — BROOKLYN DIOCESAN BISHOP ROBERT BRENNAN INVITES THE FAITHFUL OF THE DIOCESE to join him in prayer for the humanitarian crisis that has erupted over the past week in Haiti. Bishop Brennan will preside at Mass on Monday, March 18, at 7:30 p.m. at Holy Innocents Church in Flatbush. The parish is that day’s stop on the Diocesan Lenten Pilgrimage. Archbishop Max Leroy Mésidor of Port-au-Prince, president of the Haitian Bishops’ Conference, reports through Brooklyn’s diocesan newspaper, The Tablet, that Haiti stands on the brink of civil war, with armed and organized gangs have overpowered local law enforcement, and blocking charitable organizations from helping those most affected. Flatbush has a significant Haitian-American and immigrant population.

The closure of the main port in Port-au-Prince has resulted in critical shortages of essential supplies. U.N. reports indicate that over half of Haiti’s 11 million people are struggling to access adequate food, and 1.4 million are facing starvation.

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68 STUDENT WINNERS OF BPL HISTORY CONTEST
ADVANCE TO STATE-LEVEL COMPETITION

CITYWIDE — THE CENTER FOR BROOKLYN HISTORY AT BROOKLYN PUBLIC LIBRARY ON MONDAY, MARCH 11, ANNOUNCED 68 STUDENTS HAVE WON TOP HONORS IN ITS New York City History Contest. Nearly 300 middle and high school students from 37 schools across the city, including Brooklyn Technical High School, participated, working individually or in groups. They completed 172 projects addressing the theme of Turning Points in History. Projects fit into one of five categories: websites, papers, documentaries, performances, and exhibits. The Center for Brooklyn History at Brooklyn Public Library was the host for New York City History Day. The winning projects covered a wide range of historical events, time periods, and people, including the U.S. Constitution, the significance of the Stonewall Riots, and, locally, the construction of the Williamsburg Bridge. The winners now advance to the state-level competition.

A Brooklyn Tech student, Clarissa Kunizaki, won first place in the Senior Paper category with her project, titled “Rising Up like Tigers: Unraveling Threads of Resistance in the 1982 Chinatown Garment Workers’ Strike.”

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CUNY’S APPRENTICESHIP DEGREE PROGRAM
EXPANDS WITH $2M GRANT

CITYWIDE — CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK’S SUCCESSFUL APPRENTICESHIP DEGREE PROGRAM WILL BE RECEIVING A $2 MILLION EXPANSION, Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Monday, March 11. This $2 million investment will expand CUNY’s Associates of Applied Science College Apprenticeship program and increase the number of apprenticeship opportunities for students. The increased funding enables CUNY, in partnership with the New York Jobs CEO Council, to add more employers to its network currently providing paid apprenticeships to students seeking associate degrees. The number of participating companies has grown to include Bloomberg, Travelers and Northwell Health. These apprenticeships will be available at the seven CUNY community colleges, and four-year schools New York City College of Technology, in Downtown Brooklyn, celebrating its 75th year, and Medgar Evers College in Crown Heights.

The expansion builds on a similar investment that New York State made last year that supported the creation of 12 apprenticeship programs embedded within degree programs during the 2023-2024 academic year.

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HOCHUL: MTA’S COMMUTER RAILROADS SEE
BEST-EVER FEBRUARY ON-TIME PERFORMANCES

STATEWIDE — BROOKLYNITES WHO USE THE REGIONAL COMMUTER RAILROADS may be pleased to learn that the MTA saw its best-ever February performance on Metro North and the LIRR last month, Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Monday, March 11. A record 96.3% of Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad trains operated on time during February, with Metro-North Railroad recording the best month in its history on East of Hudson service with a nearly perfect on-time performance of 99.3% on Hudson, Harlem and New Haven Lines. The LIRR’s February 2024 record includes 6,400 more monthly trains, as the railroad added a history-making 271 trains per day to its schedule to accompany the opening of Grand Central Madison last year.

Metro-North also achieved its record on-time performance during its aggressive infrastructure program involving a major switch replacement project on Grand Central Terminal’s upper level. During this period, the railroad also navigated two major snow events.

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COMPTROLLER AND CITY COUNCILMEMBERS
SET TO INTRODUCE AMBITIOUS HOUSING BUDGET

CITY HALL — AN AFFORDABLE HOUSING BUDGET CAMPAIGN WAS THE FOCUS of a press conference that City Comptroller Brad Lander, Public Advocate Jumaane William and other officials were holding at City Hall on Monday morning, March 11. The City Council’s Progressive Caucus housing organizations and labor leaders were introducing what is considered an ambitious affordable housing budget campaign to address the housing crisis and an eviction rate that tripled during 2023. According to a pre-event statement from Comptroller Lander’s office, “The most powerful tool the City has to address the housing crisis is the ability to finance and preserve permanently affordable housing.” Among the Brooklyn City Councilmembers who were expected to participate: Councilmember Jen Gutiérrez (D-34) Chi Ossé (D-36) Sandy Nurse (D-37), Alexa Avilés (D-38), and Shahana Hanif (D-39). Leaders from Habitat for Humanity, the Met Council on Housing, the Fifth Avenue Committee and several unions also participated.

Lander reported that working-class and low-income New Yorkers, some in essential but less-desirable jobs, are leaving the city at three times the rate of wealthy residents.

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FDNY OFFICIALS INVESTIGATE HECKLING
INCIDENT AT PROMOTION CEREMONY

STARRETT CITY — AFTER FIREFIGHTERS ATTENDING LAST WEEK’S FDNY PROMOTION CEREMONY HECKLED THE STATE ATTORNEY GENERAL during her speech, officials are hunting down the culprits, reports The Hill, a newsletter covering the intersection of politics and business. Moreover, FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh has apologized for the hecklers’ behavior, reports the Daily News. During the ceremony, held at the Christian Cultural Center in East New York, a group of firefighters started chanting “Trump, Trump,” and booing Attorney General James. The attorney general, who was giving remarks for the swearing-in ceremony of Rev. Pamela Holmes-Saxton as the FDNY’s first African American female chaplain, reportedly chided the crowd for doing this at church and then, keeping her head and telling them to “simmer down,” quipped a thank you for “getting this out of your system.”

The hecklers were reportedly expressing their displeasure at Attorney General James’ victory in a civil fraud case against the former president.

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SUBWAY-SURFING YOUTH INJURED
IN FALL FROM CONEY-BOUND F TRAIN

PARK SLOPE — A YOUTH WHO FELL ONTO THE TRACKS AFTER SURFING AN F TRAIN ON SUNDAY miraculously survived, reports the Daily News. The 14-year-old boy was riding on top of an F train heading toward Coney Island when he fell at the Seventh Avenue station (near 9th St.) around 1:40 p.m. NYPD first responders, finding the boy conscious and responsive, got him transported to nearby NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital in stable condition. Just last week a 10-year-old boy was caught while surfing an A train on the elevated train in the Rockaways, the Daily News pointed out in the same story. Fortunately, he merely got in trouble with the law, with the police writing up a juvenile report and later releasing the youth to his mother.

Another subway-surfing teen, Adam Reyes, was not so lucky; in January he was killed in a fall from another Coney Island-bound F train.

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CITY COUNCIL PASSES BILL REQUIRING SHORE POWER FOR CRUISE SHIPS IN RED HOOK

RED HOOK — THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVED THE ‘OUR AIR OUR WATER ACT’ introduced by Councilmember Alexa Aviles (D-Red Hook/Sunset Park) on Thursday, March 7. The bill aims to alleviate pollution and severe traffic jams in Red Hook by requiring shore power for the giant cruise ships docking there, and provide traffic mitigation plans for such ships. “This is a community-led victory that’s been years in the making and I’m grateful to play a part in its passage,” Aviles said on Instagram. The bill’s passage was called “a big win for the community” by Community Board 6 and Red Hook community advocates. The city’s Economic Development Corp. (EDC) opposed the bill.

The Brooklyn Cruise Ship Terminal is the only one on the East Coast that provides an electric shore power system, but the gargantuan MSC’s Meraviglia is currently unable to plug into it.

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CB2 TO CONSIDER CO-NAMING FT. GREENE CORNER ‘EMILY ANN MYRICK WAY’

FORT GREENE — BROOKLYN’S COMMUNITY BOARD 2 WILL CONSIDER CO-NAMING the southwest corner of Carlton and Park avenues as “Emily Ann Myrick Way” at the next meeting of its Transportation and Public Safety Committee on Thursday, March 21, at 6 p.m. Emily Ann Myrick lived at the Walt Whitman Houses for more than 50 years, and was known as a legendary mother and grandmother in Fort Greene. She worked as a guidance counselor at P.S. 46, where she often dressed and fed the children, and gave out awards to kids who struggled the most. Her model was, “There’s no such thing as a bad child.” Myrick obtained her master’s degree at the age of 71, and was president of the Fort Greene Housing Association for many years. Her family and the community submitted the application for the co-naming.

The CB2 meeting will take place at 350 Jay St., 8th floor.

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CB2 TO CONSIDER CO-NAMING DUMBO STREET ‘GLEASON’S GYM WAY’

DUMBO — BROOKLYN’S COMMUNITY BOARD 2 WILL CONSIDER CO-NAMING Water Street between Adams and Washington streets in DUMBO as “Gleason’s Gym Way,” at the next meeting of its Transportation and Public Safety Committee on Thursday, March 21, at 6 p.m. Gleason’s, called the last remnant of boxing’s “Golden Age” in New York, opened in 1937 and moved to DUMBO IN 1987. Gleason’s has trained greats including Jake LaMatta, Muhammed Ali and Gerry Cooney, has served as a home-away-from-home for champions including Larry Holmes and Michael Spinks, and launched female champs Heather Hardy, Sonya Lamonakis and more. The gym also trains actors and dancers, and provides children’s programs. Owner Bruce Silverglade with local businesses submitted the application for the co-naming.

The CB2 meeting will take place at 350 Jay St., 8th floor.

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NATIONWIDE HACK ON INSURANCE PAYMENT PROCESSOR LEAVES PATIENTS DESPERATE

NATIONWIDE — AS A HACK ON A MAJOR COMPANY that processes insurance payments to pharmacies nationwide stretches into its third week, many patients around the country have been forced to choose between paying out of pocket for essential medications, including cancer drugs and insulin, or forgoing them entirely, NBC News reports. Since the Feb. 21 Russian cyberattack on Change Healthcare — which completes 15 billion transactions a year — pharmacies have been scrounging in doctors’ offices for free sample medications for patients who can’t afford to pay. But there are no free samples for cancer patients whose life-saving meds can cost $16,000 a month. UnitedHealthcare, which owns Change Healthcare, didn’t answer questions about whether it paid a ransom. But cybersecurity experts pointed NBC to a bitcoin wallet that received a payment of more than $22 million.

Physician practices are also threatened by the hack, AMA President Dr. Jesse Ehrenfeld said in a release Friday. Change Healthcare has set a March 18 timeline for testing its claims systems, meaning stressed doctors’ offices and medical practices will need economic assistance to keep operating.

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ADAMS’ ADMIN DENIES IT ‘FLUBBED’ FEDERAL MIGRANT AID PAPERWORK

CITYWIDE — OFFICIALS IN MAYOR ADAMS’ ADMINISTRATION DENIED claims they flubbed the paperwork required to unlock $107 million in federal migrant aid, arguing instead the rules need to be changed to meet the realities of the city, the Daily News reports. These rules involve reporting Alien Identification Numbers; spending the aid during migrants’ first 45 days in the country; and a cap on funding for hotel rooms. A Biden official told the News that the money hasn’t been released to the city because Adams’ team didn’t file the right paperwork. FEMA officials were dispatched to the city last week to help officials fill out the forms. Ingrid Lewis-Martin, Adams’ chief adviser at City Hall, insisted the meeting never happened. But City Hall acknowledged to the News after the briefing that Lewis-Martin “misspoke” and that the meeting did actually take place.

The Biden administration said this week other U.S. cities, including Chicago, have managed to file the required paperwork. A spokesman for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson declined to comment.

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ARREST IN VIOLENT ATLANTIC AVE SUBWAY STATION ROBBERY

SOUTHERN BROOKLYN — POLICE APPREHENDED A SUSPECT wanted for punching and robbing a 67-year man in the Atlantic Avenue subway station in January. Timothy McElroy, 36, was arrested and charged with robbery on Feb. 15 at 8:45 a.m. within the 60th Precinct, which includes Coney Island and Brighton Beach. During the attack, which took place at roughly 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 21., McElroy allegedly approached the victim and punched him with a closed fist multiple times in the face, causing a minor laceration to the nose. He then forcibly removed the man’s bag and wallet, before fleeing on foot. The victim was treated on scene by EMS for minor injuries.

McElroy lives on West 94 St. in Manhattan.

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HOCHUL ANNOUNCES PLAN TO DEAL WITH MASSIVE MEDICAL INSURANCE CYBERATTACK

ALBANY — GOV. KATHY HOCHUL ANNOUNCED ON FRIDAY THAT HEALTH INSURERS in New York have been directed to follow new protocols and to assist health care providers, to ensure New Yorkers have access to uninterrupted health care services. This action was taken after a cyberattack on health care platform Change Healthcare, part of UnitedHealth Group, disrupted claims and payment systems for medications nationwide on Feb. 21. Patients around the country have been forced to choose between paying out of pocket for essential medications, including cancer drugs and insulin, or forgoing them entirely, NBC News reported.

The NYS Department of Financial Services has issued a letter to health insurers and other health benefit issuers instructing them how to ensure continuity of care following the Russian cyberattack.

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PENTAGON: IN-DEPTH REPORT FINDS NO EVIDENCE OF ALIENS OR UFO COVERUP BY GOVERNMENT

WASHINGTON, D.C. — THERE’S NOTHING TO SEE HERE, FOLKS. A 62-page Pentagon report found no evidence that the government is covering up knowledge of UFO visits to Earth, aliens or extraterrestrial technology, The New York Times and other outlets reported Friday. “All investigative efforts, at all levels of classification, concluded that most sightings were ordinary objects and phenomena and the result of misidentification,” Defense Department spokesperson Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder said in a statement. But amid the growing conspiracy culture, the report is unlikely to calm the nation’s obsession with aliens, the Times concludes.

This despite the 1996 investigative report, “Witnessed; The True Story of the Brooklyn Bridge Abductions,” by artist and UFO researcher Budd Hopkins. “Either the best alien abduction story ever documented or a complete work of fiction,” wrote an Amazon reviewer with the moniker “I Want To Believe …”

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PEDESTRIAN FATALITY COUNT RISES AS DUMP TRUCK HITS WOMAN IN CROSSWALK

FLATBUSH — THE DUMP TRUCK THAT HIT AND KILLED A FLATBUSH WOMAN ON THURSDAY, MARCH 7, IS THE SAME ONE INVOLVED in the fatal collision of a crossing guard in Queens last year, reports the Daily News. According to police and NYC Department of Transportation reports, the NYPD responded to an early-morning vehicle collision on Thursday involving a pedestrian within the crosswalk, at the corner of Bedford and Tilden avenues in Flatbush. First responders tried to save the 58-year-old woman lying in the roadway but pronounced her deceased on the scene. An NYPD investigation revealed that the pedestrian, since identified as Maria Piovanetti of Tilden Avenue, had been walking within the marked crosswalk when a southbound 2014 Kenworth dump truck struck her.

The dump truck bore the same license plate as the Manolos Trucking LLC vehicle that struck NYPD school crossing guard Krystyna Naprawa in October, according to photos shared with the Daily News. NYPD CompStat was not yet updated as of press time to reflect Thursday’s tragedy.

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COUNCILMEMBER ZHUANG OFFERS FREE TAX PREPARATION SERVICES

BENSONHURST TO SUNSET PARK — COUNCILMEMBER SUSAN ZHUANG (D-43) LAST WEEK LAUNCHED A SERIES OF COMMUNITY-BASED INITIATIVES TO HELP SENIORS AND OTHER CONSTITUENTS WITH TAX SEASON. Her office has partnered with local senior centers, Met Council and the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection to provide a series of tax services tailored to all members of the community in Chinese and English. Constituents age 65 and over can get support filing for the senior tax credit at Councilmember Zhuang’s district office, 2015 Stillwell Ave., which will also provide tax return support services during open office hours. Senior tax credit support services will also be held at the Asian Community Center, 746 61st St., in Sunset Park, Tuesdays from noon to 4 p.m.

Other constituents may schedule an appointment via 718-307-7151 for help from the Met Council and NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, for help available on specific days: Tuesday, March 19; Monday, March 25; Monday, April 1 and Thursday, April 4 at Zhuang’s above-listed district office on Stillwell Ave.

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SUSTAINABLE REFRIGERANTS BEING TESTED IN PILOT PROJECTS AT TWO NATIONAL CHAINS

STATEWIDE — TWO PROJECTS THAT THE NY STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION RECENTLY COMPLETED SUCCESSFULLY DEMONSTRATE THE USE OF SUSTAINABLE REFRIGERANTS IN GROCERY STORES as a replacement for climate-altering greenhouse gas refrigerants. The projects, conducted at an Aldi and a Walgreens, both outside of New York City, could still have a major positive impact on Brooklyn, as models for future commercial sustainable refrigeration transition in supermarkets and drugstores. The DEC hopes to encourage businesses across New York to transition to natural refrigeration systems. Next, utilizing the test locations as training sites, will enable the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council to facilitate workforce development and help support the widespread adoption of climate-friendly technologies, including the ability to achieve required temperatures, energy efficiency, maintenance and ultimately total emission comparisons between equipment types.

The projects are expected to demonstrate New York’s efforts to address the upfront cost barriers of technology adoption, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and ensure food security.

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FDA ISSUES CONTAMINATION WARNING ON CERTAIN MUSSELS FROM NEWFOUNDLAND

EAST COAST — THE FDA IS ADVISING RESTAURANTS AND FOOD RETAILERS NOT TO SERVE OR SELL AND TO DISPOSE OF MUSSELS and warning consumers not to eat mussels from Allen’s Fisheries (NL0047SP) due to possible contamination in the Canadian province of Newfoundland, harvested on Feb. 7, 2024 from harvest area AQ # 15, with a final harvest date of Feb. 18, 2024 and shipped to distributors in New York and other East Coast states around Feb. 21. The FDA on March 1 received an advisory from the New Jersey Department of Health about an outbreak of illness associated with consumption of certain mussels. The cases experienced symptoms including nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Restaurants and retailers are advised to discard their supply of these products or to contact their distributor to arrange for return and destruction.

The FDA is awaiting further information on distribution of the mussels and will continue to monitor the investigation and provide assistance to state authorities.

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ITALIAN ORGANIZATION HONORS COUNCILWOMAN SUSAN ZHUANG

BENSONHURST — Figli Maria SS. Addolorata, a fraternal Italian American organization with a chapter in Bensonhurst, honored City Councilmember Susan Zhuang on March 3. Councilwoman Zhuang received the Distinguished Community Leader Award for her service to this community as a dedicated mother and public servant on Festa Della Donna (Women’s Day). “As we enter Women’s History Month, I am prouder than ever not just to be a woman but to be a mother to two beautiful girls. As a member of a female-majority City Council, I am proud to advocate for our community every day,” said Zhuang as she accepted the award.

Since its founding 75 years ago by immigrants from the Italian coastal town of Mola in Bari, Italy, Figli Maria SS. Addolorata has been a haven for Italian Americans across Brooklyn. The Figli Maria SS. Addolorata has a chapter at St. Athanasius parish in Bensonhurst. A similar organization, the Congrega Maria SS. Addolorata, has its home at Sacred Heart-St. Stephen parish in Carroll Gardens.