Jersey Junkyard Jars Brooklyn Heights

Gothamist reports a stench in the area around 2:00 a.m. on the morning of October 17^th. Brooklyn Heights Blog reports it at 3:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m. Clearly, the stench saturated the air of the area.

Residents wandered the streets, gathered on steps, called the 84^th Precinct and 911.

The smell of fire, smoke, and rubber burning was alarming. People, naturally, feared one of their neighbors' houses was on fire. Luckily, that was not the case.

It turns out the New Jersey City Fire Department said the stench was due to a Jersey junkyard burning scrap metal. "The NYC Office of Emergency Management Tweeted messages that residents in Brooklyn and Queens might smell the smoke," reports Gothamist.

Here's an example of modern technology gone awry. What about all of the residents who don't use Twitter or were too busy to check their tweets? Are other forms of communication (television, radio, newspapers, and the like) too old-fashioned for The NYC Office of Emergency Management?

And Mayor Bloomberg wants to ban smoking in parks and public areas throughout the city. Let's not breathe in cigarette smoke; let's breathe in toxic fumes from junkyard fires, instead.

Source:

Jen Chung, "Jersey City Junkyard Fire Smoke Travels To Brooklyn, Queens," Gothamist

Homer Fink, "How 'Bout That Burning Smell?," Brooklyn Heights Blog