In a heartbreaking incident during New York City’s frigid cold spell, a man was found dead on a bench outside a Queens supermarket after declining assistance from a concerned manager. The victim became the latest casualty of the harsh weather conditions that have gripped the city.
The following morning, the manager was distressed to discover that the man had passed away, still seated on the same bench where he had last seen him the prior night.
“I approached him, wishing him a good morning,” recounted Luis Polanco, the 28-year-old manager of the Key Foods located on Francis Lewis Blvd. near 35th Ave. in Flushing. “But he didn’t respond at all.”
Authorities reported that the 47-year-old man was found deceased around 6 a.m. on Tuesday. His identity has not been disclosed, as officials are in the process of notifying his family.
This tragic event marks the tenth fatality in the city linked to the severe cold snap that began on Saturday.
The previous evening, Polanco had noticed the man entering the store with a bloody nose, adding to his concern for the individual’s well-being.
“I asked if he needed help,” said Polanco. “I say, ‘You okay? You need to go somewhere? You need police?’ He said, ‘No, I’m okay.’”
When the manager left work that night, the man was sitting on a bench outside, enjoying a tub of peanut butter he had purchased at the store.
A customer pointed out the unconscious man still on the bench when Polanco returned the following morning.
“It’s sad,” said Polanco. “I think maybe he was drinking.”
The city Medical Examiner will determine his cause of death along with the nine other victims whose deaths are suspected to be cold related.
The city is ramping up efforts to clear the streets of people at night amid the coldest weather conditions in eight years.
“When the cold is this deadly, we need to meet the moment and leave no stone unturned,” Mamdani said at a City Hall press conference Tuesday
A number of those who died are suspected of being homeless, and cops are still trying to determine the identitiy of several of them.
Sub-freezing temps are expected to continue well into next week.
