Bed-Stuy resident: Home invaded by feces, little help to fix the issue

The apartment is now disheveled from the water and left with major damages. McBurnette says she used all of her towels to clean and threw out her rug and speakers, which are now spoiled from the water.

News 12 Staff

Oct 20, 2021, 9:38 PM

Updated 1,083 days ago

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A home invaded by feces is how a Bed-Stuy resident describes the experience after her toilet and bathtub overflowed in her home twice in less than a week. 
Cliche McBurnette says she has received little to no help from management to fix things since the leak happened on Thursday. 
She says the leak happened while she was at work on Thursday as her apartment was going through a Section 8 inspection. 
She says she received a call saying her bathtub and toilet were flooding with feces. She was given a vacuum machine from building maintenance and was asked to clean up the mess herself. 
The apartment is now disheveled from the water and left with major damages. McBurnette says she used all of her towels to clean and threw out her rug and speakers, which are now spoiled from the water. 
McBurnette says she lost four days of work trying to clean the mess. She’s asking to have the tiles in her apartment replaced after the feces-filled water seeped into the cracks during the flood. 
She is also asking for reimbursement for her personal items that were damaged by the flooding. 
News 12 reached out to the building management and was told that management says the flooding happened when the sewer line outside backed up, causing the overflow in Cleshea's apartment. During the cleaning, they say plumbers say they found a wig, face mask and baby wipes in the pipes.
The building management also tells News 12 the plumber came the same day and the cleaning service ordered by the building came on Monday to help clean the apartment. They say all of the tiles are set to be replaced in the unit. The owners of the building also say they are willing to compensate Cleshea for anything lost in the apartment.
The building management also says additional plumbers were sent out on Tuesday to ensure there was no further blockage in the building.
They also added that they do their best to assist their tenants in times of distress.