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UES Explosion Update: Source Says MTA Workers "Covered Wrong Hole"
By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 22, 2012
Modified Aug 22, 2012
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Fox 5
By
John Del Signore
Published Aug 22, 2012
Modified Aug 22, 2012
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A "miscommunication" at the Second Avenue subway project caused yesterday's miraculously bloodless explosion on the Upper East Side, a source tells the NY Post. "There seemed to be [some] confusion,” says the unidentified source, who also happens to be a master of understatement. The blast sprayed debris eight stories high, scattering giant chunks of concrete onto the intersection of 72nd Street and Second Avenue, shattering windows and giving residents flashbacks of Beirut and WWII.
Sources tell the Post that workers "put a protective cover over the wrong hole during escalator-shaft blasting yesterday. Instead of covering an escalator shaft under construction, the protective metal plate was placed on a vertical hole that led elsewhere below the street." The result gave everyone quite a scare. Gallery worker Marsha Kaufman tells the tabloid, “Huge plumes of smoke and rock came shooting out of the hole across the street. When they hit the windows, we all froze.”
We asked MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz about this allegation. He could not confirm its veracity, but Ortiz does say, "It appears that there were two factors at play. The force of the blast was concentrated in one area. And the deck above was not able to withstand that force because it was not anchored in." Oopsy! Must have been the anchor guy's day off. Also troubling: The Post reports that a "smaller but similar incident at the southeast corner of 72nd Street a few weeks ago is still under investigation." New Yorkers are advised to use extreme caution when entering the Second Ave Subway War Zone.
Tagged
2nd ave subway
explosions
MTA
second avenue subway
things that make you go boom
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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