COLONIE — About seven months ago, on Dec. 1, Second Chance Thrift Shop store manager Theresa Viva was in the back of the shop when she heard a noise in the front room and was immediately frightened.
“I thought someone had broken in,” Viva said.
Viva was horrified to see water pouring down from the ceiling and onto the thrift shop’s furnishings and stock below. The flood — which Viva estimated to involve 3 to 4 inches of water — was caused by a broken pipe connected to a toilet upstairs. It resulted in thousands of dollars of structural damage and the loss of 80% to 90% of products in the shop’s front room, from clothing to jewelry, Viva said…