Philip Piuma, 47, was found dead on Jan. 27 on a bench outside a Key Food in Flushing after reportedly falling the day before and suffering facial injuries. Store staff saw him that evening but did not summon help; his stepfather says a 911 call might have saved him. Piuma was not homeless, according to his church, and his death occurred during a rare, deadly cold snap that claimed about 20 lives in New York City. City officials later expanded shelter and warming-center capacity as temperatures plunged into the teens.
47-Year-Old Found Dead on Bench Outside Queens Supermarket After Slipping in Cold; Family Says a Call Could Have Saved Him
Phillip PiumaPhillip Piuma/Facebook
Philip Piuma, 47, was found dead on the morning of Jan. 27 on a bench outside a Key Food supermarket in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens, New York, after reportedly falling the previous day and sustaining facial injuries, according to local news reports and family members.
Police and multiple outlets, including The New York Times and Gothamist, say Piuma left his Bayside home on Jan. 26 to pick up a prescription for his uncle at a CVS and may have fallen twice near the Key Food. His stepfather, John Sandrowsky, told reporters detectives said Piuma had injuries to his nose and eye socket.
Key Food manager Luis Polanco said Piuma entered the store that evening with a bloody nose. 'I asked if he needed help,' Polanco told the New York Daily News. 'I say, "You OK? You need to go somewhere? You need police?" He said, "No, I'm OK."'
Polanco later saw Piuma sitting on a nearby bench with a tub of peanut butter he had bought. He told The Times he assumed Piuma was intoxicated. The next morning, when the manager returned to open the store, he found Piuma unresponsive and called 911.
'You offered some help, that's great,' Sandrowsky told The Times. 'But if you're bleeding out there and it's that cold, I would question whether or not you're OK.' He added to Gothamist: 'He would've been saved if somebody would have made a phone call. I'm just in disbelief.'
A spokesperson for the New York City Police Department told PEOPLE on Feb. 16 that the death was not deemed suspicious and the department had no further information to share. Key Food did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment.
Rev. Larry Byrne of All Saints Episcopal Church in Bayside, where Piuma had attended, said Piuma was not homeless and described him as a 'gentle soul' who loved to help others. The church posted a remembrance on Facebook asking for prayers for Piuma's family.
The discovery comes amid an 18-day stretch of unusually frigid temperatures in New York City that began on Jan. 24. At least about 20 people died in the city during that period, with victims ranging in age from their late 20s to 90. AccuWeather recorded a high of 27°F and a low of 19°F in Flushing on Jan. 26.
City officials later announced expanded shelter and warming-center capacity. On Feb. 7, Mayor Zohran Mamdani urged anyone still outside to come indoors, warning that 'being outdoors for even a brief period of time can be lethal.'
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