Sitting along the border between Brooklyn and Queens, the Hole is a poor, sunken neighborhood, about four miles from Kennedy International Airport, with small buildings surrounded by vacant lots, wild-growing reed grass, and streets dotted with potholes and abandoned cars.
Also known as the Jewel Streets (street names include Ruby, Emerald and Amber), the swampy area sits at one of the lowest elevations in the city, about four feet above sea level. For this reason, it is not connected to the sewer system — residences rely on septic tanks and cesspools — and the streets flood just about every time it rains.