We’re called ‘Mole People’ because we live in the SEWER but we’ve got a computer and microwave – and live rent free
A MAN has told how he lived a rent-free life after building an unusual home inside a sewer.
Carlos, 48, who moved to the US when he was 21, was forced to think outside the box when he found himself homeless in New York.
He headed to the city’s Freedom Tunnel – a railroad tunnel on the West side of the city – where he set up home and lived for more than two years.
Carlos and his neighbours are known as the “mole people” – a name given to the homeless who live in the tunnels beneath New York.
But Cuba-born Carlos insisted he had everything he needed in his underground home – including a computer, fridge and microwave.
YouTube creator Erik K Swanson travelled to Manhattan to meet with people who lived underground – and Carlos opened up about living in the space.
He told Erik: “I live in the tunnel. I’ve got everything that I need, you know? I’ve got my place, everything is ok – heat, everything, electricity.”
Carlos led the camera team down a stretch of unused railway track and through a hole in the ground using a ladder into his home.
He showed how he transformed the sewer – even putting down a “welcome” doormat down and telling guests to take their shoes off.
The compact room was complete with a computer, printer, fridge and microwave – all fully functional after tapping into a power source and running an electricity line into the tunnel.
And Carlos said he managed to source everything from the bins.
“Everything is from the garbage – I found it. And it doesn’t smell bad here,” he said.
Carlos wasn’t the only one making a life in the sewers.
He said his pal Brian had discovered the space more than five years ago and lived next door to him in another sewer.
Carlos revealed that he and the rest of the tunnel community had no trouble finding food, as they’d found ways to eat for free.
“Supermarkets throw out food – the food that the date has expired and some food that is damaged,” he said.
“It is in good shape, so we take it. For food, I don’t have to worry.”
But getting water into his home was an arduous task.
He would have to get it from a pump, fill up some cartons and then transport them down into the sewer.
Despite some of the challenges he come up against, Carlos – who has since moved on from his bizarre underground home – said living in a tunnel had huge advantages.
And he said it was better than being on the streets of New York.