Mr. Park, 55, was seriously injured on March 19 while returning to his car after dining with his family at a restaurant located on 32nd Street, the center of Manhattan's Koreatown. The culprit? A huge pothole.

 "There was no street lamp, and the light from the restaurant window did not illuminate the curb, which was hidden by the shadow of the trash can. I couldn't see the pothole at all," Mr. Park said. "As soon as I stepped off the curb, my foot just kept going, and I was suddenly up to my calves in water. I lost my balance and fell heavily, hitting my head on the trash can," Mr. Park said.

Mr. Park fell sideways and then onto his stomach, bruising his face, arms, and legs, which he had x-rayed at a local hospital.

"After this accident, I heard from several acquaintances that I was not the first to fall at this spot. At least two other people have fallen before me in the same spot, in the same manner. That pothole is constantly filled with water – runoff from nearby restaurants. It's really dangerous. Someone could break their neck there," Mr. Park said.

According to legal experts, Mr. Park, and anyone else who is injured in the same way has the right to sue the owner of the trash can for damages. Mr. Hong, who practices criminal law in New York, said that, "if you sustain an injury because of property belonging to someone else, you should always call 911 immediately, and have an officer come to the scene to document the accident. It's very hard to file for damages without a police report." Mr. Hong added that in such a case, it's important to remain on the scene until someone arrives.  "It helps to have witnesses," he said.

The pavement on 32nd Street is very uneven, and the street's drainage system does not function properly. Korean officials in New York have voiced frequent and numerous complaints to city officials about the condition of this heavily used street. But, they say, they have gotten no response, and nothing has been done to repair the dangerous conditions.

"The place where Mr. Park fell down on 32nd Street is not privately owned, it's a public city street, owned by the city," said Mr. Suoeng-rae Lee, the leader Manhattan's Korean society. "The building's owner is not responsible for such infrastructure repairs. New York City is responsible.  We have put in many complaints to the city's Service Center, as well as to the local police precinct, but the potholes remain," Mr. Lee said.

Some Korean restaurant owners have placed makeshift "bridges" over the potholes in front of their stores, but this is not a solution to the problem. It also raises the question of what would happen if someone were to injure themselves on such a bridge. Who would be responsible?

"Because of the infrastructure problems in this area, we are considering joining the 34th St. Business Improvement District (BID). If Koreatown joins this BID, maybe we can hope to see the potholes and drains repaired, and an end to the injuries and the accidents caused by the deteriorating infrastructure in Midtown," Mr. Lee said.

VIDEO :: Cinema verite of a  busy West 32nd Street day.