The New York Police Department has opened an investigation after a viral social media video appeared to show three people wearing overalls and headlamps climbing out of a Manhattan manhole.
The NYPD confirmed to News Outlet that the incident happened at 4:19 a.m. on Aug. 18 at the southeast corner of 32nd Street and Seventh Avenue, just steps from Penn Station.
Police said no arrests have been made so far, but investigators are examining surveillance footage as they work to determine what happened.
NYPD detectives told WABC they believe some of the people seen in similar videos may be migrants looking for valuables inside the city’s sewer system.
Social media video showed three people emerging from a manhole near Penn Station on Aug. 18, 2026, with the first individual climbing onto the sidewalk. (Ricardy Fabre via Storyful)
Detectives also told the station that scavenging cultures exist in countries such as Venezuela.
City officials have warned that entering manholes without authorization is illegal and “extremely dangerous.”
A second person was also seen exiting the manhole in the Aug. 18 video, which remains under investigation by the NYPD. (Ricardy Fabre via Storyful)
“DEP has inspected the sewers at the location, and our infrastructure is safe. DEP works closely with our public safety partners to help ensure the safety and security of critical infrastructure throughout New York City,” the city’s Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement to News Outlet.
The statement continued: “Entering the sewer system is both illegal and extremely dangerous. Sewers can contain numerous hazards, including noxious and potentially deadly gases, unstable surfaces, flooding risks, and confined spaces. For these reasons, members of the public should never enter a pipe, drain, catch basin, manhole, or outfall.”
A construction worker stands near an open manhole during street maintenance works in New York City, in October 2025. (Stefan Panaitescu/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
New York City’s sewer system is made up of an elaborate network of more than 7,400 miles of wastewater and stormwater pipes, parts of which date back to the 1800s.
In June, The Associated Press reported on three separate instances of people exiting manholes in Queens and the Williamsburg and Gravesend neighborhoods of Brooklyn.
Many of them were wearing headlamps and were carrying shovels or other tools when they were caught on video.
