Man shocked to find $38M utility bill for Queens studio apartment
ASTORIA, Queens -- A New York man couldn't believe it when he received a $38 million Con Ed utility bill for his small studio apartment in Astoria.
Tommy Straub said he discovered the bill when he went to make a payment online Monday night.
He decided to do what everyone does these days. He tweeted about it, posting in part: "I own a 600-square-foot apartment in Queens. This is insane. Fix it."
"I woke up this morning and it's on 'Kelly and Ryan.' You guys contacted me, it's all over the place," Straub said.
The excessive bill was not just a talker on morning TV. Since Straub tagged Con Ed in his tweet, the utility company quickly responded and said it would look into the matter.
Straub says the issue was being unable to change the amount that auto-populated in the payment box. Instead of the $74 he actually owed, it read nearly $38 million.
By mid-afternoon Tuesday, Con Ed said the problem had been resolved, but there was no word on the specific cause of the misunderstanding.
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