Neighbors Horrified By Fish Drying On Bensonhurst Roof
Submitted by Cynthia Christo
One resourceful Bensonhurst family is using solar power to preserve their fish, and neighbors are not pleased.
Cynthia Christo, who lives across the street from the offenders, sent us a photo of the filets, which she spotted hanging out to dry on the roof of a home on 64th Street near 18th Avenue at 9am this morning.
“They keep coming out and beating the bugs off of it,” she said. “We called 311, but they didn’t know what to label it under, so they didn’t do anything.”
This is not the first sun-based barbecue sighting in the neighborhood. In July, a Dyker Heights resident drew the ire of the internet — and his neighbors — when the Brooklyn Paper published a photo of his shrimp roasting on the sidewalk in front of his home. The Health Department set a date to respond to the complaint, but at that point, the prawns were long gone.
Drying fish with sunlight and wind is a curing method that has been used since ancient times and continues to be used across the globe. Often the filets are salted or smoked before drying.
Sun-curing is not all that different than the classic, middle school science experiment — solar-baked chocolate chip cookies using construction paper and tin foil. But when living in tight, urban quarters, you run the risk of being scrutinized by busybody neighbors.
“We’re going to get rodents. I am afraid that I’ll come home to a rat,” said Christo. “It’s just disgusting.”
How do you feel about the sun-dried fish? Is it charming and ingenious, or a serious public health problem? Share your thoughts in the comments.
