Approximately 70 percent of the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) playgrounds are found to be in “unsatisfactory” condition, with some posing glaring safety hazards, according to an audit released by New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer. In some locations, playground equipment dates back half a century to when the public housing complex was first built. This failure to properly maintain hundreds of playgrounds potentially puts tens of thousands of children at risk.
Stringer’s office inspected all 788 NYCHA-maintained playgrounds across 238 NYCHA developments and found that 549 were plagued with hazardous conditions, such as missing and broken play equipment, exposed jagged edges, and loose and damaged safety surfaces. The audit also revealed that NYCHA’s own inspection reports for 25 sampled developments were either inaccurate, lacked the required supervisory review, or were missing altogether.
NYCHA is the largest public housing authority in the U.S. It houses more than 400,000 New Yorkers in its developments, including 100,000 children. Playgrounds play a vital role in the lives of the children living in the developments. The NYCHA’s lack of proper maintenance can pose significant risk and harm to the safety of these kids.
Unsafe Equipment Causes Playground Injuries
Unsafe playground equipment is the main reason behind a large number of playground injuries. The pieces of equipment that are most often associated with playground accidents include climbers, swings, and slides. Common injuries include concussions, broken or fractured bones, and cuts. Although you can take certain precautions to keep children safe while playing on structures, getting injured on unsafe equipment is inevitable.
If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of unsafe playground equipment, you may be entitled to compensation. An experienced NYC playground injury attorney can help you protect your legal rights and get the full compensation that you deserve.
Contact Our New York Playground Injury Attorneys
If you or a loved one has been injured while playing on unsafe playground equipment in New York City, you need to immediately contact an experienced New York City playground injury attorney to protect your legal rights and get you the full compensation that you deserve. For more information or to consult with an experienced New York City accident attorney, please call Gersowitz Libo & Korek, P.C. at 1-516-908-9792.
