Steam Pipe Explosion in New York

[Mikeaut1 261]

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/07/18/ap3929136.html

Huge steam pipe in the heart of midtown Manhattan explodes, leaving one dead and dozens injured. Here are some pictures of the steam that rose, obscuring the skyline under steam, and the damage left. There is now a huge crater on Lexington Ave. The scary thing about this all is that where this explosion occurred, it is a very busy section of Manhattan. The Chrysler Building is across the street, Grand Central is across the street, and the MetLife building is within a few blocks.

Click HERE for more pictures!!

[Ntq€310 1]

the worst thing in that someone died, some innocent person on the street, or in the car, who was minding his own, died

[gshmails 534]

Pretty crazy.  My folks work on 42nd St. and Park Ave.  My mom walked out onto the balcony and was covered in dirt!  My fiancee was in the subway on her way to Grand Central Station, but ended up having to borrow a car to drive home.  This happens in NYC more than you would know, just not on this scale. 

[Hanson784 165]

Heard about it from my uncle this afternoon who called to say he was picking up my aunt from her workplace. She works in the Ed Sullivan Building and takes a cab to Grand Central where she then takes a commuter train home.

She was a couple blocks in the cab away when it exploded. She's fine thankfully.

It's been quite a start to the week for New York, first a tornado nearly touches down in Long Island and than a steam pipe explodes in Midtown. My thoughts are with the family of the individual who died and those who were injured.

[Micah 16]

Just curious, I heard that it shook all of New York City. Is that just the media over doing it or was that true?

[GMT 389]

geeez, this looks crazy.

I wonder if bloomberg orders the authorities to do a renewal on the pipelines now, as they become a serious thread to public

[newy2 0]

that is insane, i really wouldn't be surprised if it was heard all over the city

[gshmails 534]

Originally posted by: Micah Just curious, I heard that it shook all of New York City. Is that just the media over doing it or was that true?quote>

I think that is hype.  My friend was working in Riverside Park and had no idea what had happened until I called him.

[Krio 624]

These kind of things happen when you don't maintain your stuff. It was a matter of time so nothing special in this.

[Barbarossa 51]

It is an unfortunate event, but not uncommon. The last time it happened was in the 90s and three people were killed. In our "post-9/11 world", as some like to say, I am not surprised that it freaked out a few people. The pictures were rather amazing, and to have been there must have been quite discomfiting.

Barbarossa

[Duke87 1,070]

A system of steam pipes goes under the streets all over Manhattan, even as far north as 110th St or so (it's mostly used for heating buildings in the winter). And the system is quite old. Though, I don't know of any other city in the world that has such a system, so this kind of thing is rather unique to New York.

Other cities do have gas lines, though, which can also potentially explode if they get too hot...

[crazyyaya 4]

Micah, in answer to your question, it did temporaily shake new york for a bit. Afterall, new york is one of the biggest terrorist targest in the developed world, so i guess a loud explosion on a midtown street might cause a scare.

[KyNYC 16]

I live about 40 blocks north on Lexington Ave. Heard a faint boom, but felt nothing. Was able to see the towering smoke rise taller than the skyscapers. Today, the area is cordoned off, my train bypassed Grand Central. The trains on the Lex line (4, 5 - both express and 6 - local) were running really slow this morning. One person killed...sad that! Now the asbestos!!!

[sendarrow 3]

I second Krio, nothing special on this. Things happen. Give more money to the city (to maintenance), and you would not have those problems.

[paperboy15 4]

Honestly, I had never heard of steam pipes like these until now.

[Nerd_Guy 4]

It's erie how similiar the steam cloads in the street look like the dust clouds from the WTC collapse

[Micah 16]

It actually reminded me of the movie Volcano with Tommy Lee Jones, just in the wrong city.

[Jasoncw 11,839]

Detroit has an underground steam system too.

If I remember the story right, about a year (?) ago, something broke, and the pressure launched a manhole cover into the air.  No one was hurt.  I don't remember the specifics of the story, but it had something to do with the steam pipes.

[Mikeaut1 261]

The news is saying here on Long Island that the asbestos problem will not be a threat to the city. The next concern of the city is cleaning up this mess, and it needs to be done carefully, so it is time consuming. It could take a couple months according to the city to clean it up and get traffic and subway lines running again. But asbestos is not a problem.

[ilikehotdogsalot 307]

i was suppossed to be checking into the hyatt next to grand central station on the 19th when the explosion happened but we decided to stay in rio a little bit longer, now i am quite glad we did. this is horrible news, hope everyone there remains okay.

edit: typo.

[nothingman4913 0]

Actually many other "old" cities, such as Boston, and Philly,  do have active steam pipes running in the streets. The problem with this type of utility is that there really is no regulations involving the installation/up-keep of the systems. Many of these pipes are made of asbestos and mastic, which are both very nasty compound and are also very old about 70 to 80 years old.

When these pipes are removed they are basically Haz-mat material and must be treated and cleaned before sent off to a dump.  

Also The cause of many steam pipe explosions is a condition called "water hammer," when water condenses in a closed section of pipe. When pressure is turned back on, the sudden mix of hot steam and cool water can cause pressure to skyrocket, bursting the pipe. (from Yahoo)

Many colleges still use steam today and is a very effective method for heating a building, as long as it is maintained properly.