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An 86-year-old underground steam pipe exploded in New York City on Thursday morning, spitting dangerous asbestos-contaminated debris throughout the area and leaving a crater on a bus-size street. of town.
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The explosion occurred 6:39 am in the Flatiron area of Manhattan, a few blocks from the iconic Flatiron Building, according to the New York City Fire Department .
Justin Lane / EPA / REX / Shutterstock While only five people suffered minor injuries, asbestos contamination was the biggest concern, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
"There was asbestos in the envelope of the steam pipe, which obviously worries us," De Blasio said at a press conference Thursday afternoon near Fifth Avenue.
The steam pipe was installed in 1932, officials said.
The mayor spoke shortly after receiving the results of tests conducted by Con Edison and the city's environmental protection department.
Timothy A. Clary / AFP / Getty Images A total of 49 buildings have been evacuated, many of which contain residential units. require decontamination that could take a few days, said the mayor.
"There is a real concern if debris has entered buildings and air conditioners," de Blasio said.
He added: "We also tested the air since the moment of the incident, the air has dissipated fairly quickly after the incident, so that the air in this area is now safe, there is no significant presence of asbestos in the air. this point. "
Kaitlyn C McKee De Blasio said that he was lucky that the explosion took place early in the morning before the area was teeming people and commuters who were going to work.
"Thank God, no one was seriously injured at the time," he said.
Aerial imagery showed that a mud-covered vehicle had stopped a few inches from the crater at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 21st Street. The crater was about 32 feet in diameter, about three lanes wide.
"It was a big boom and the building just shook," said Byron Chavers, who works in the area, at ABC's New York City WABC-TV station.
Five people were slightly injured but did not need to go to the hospital, said FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro.
"This is the good news for today," Nigro said at a press conference near the scene of the blast.
Justin Lane / EPA / REX / Shutterstock The mayor also notified anyone who was in the area and brought debris back on their clothes to wear clothes at a Con Ed center. The utility will compensate people for their clothes, he said. said.
At least 100 firefighters were being decontaminated and several civilians in the area at the time of the blast could also need to be decontaminated, Nigro said.
WABC The blast left a crater in the middle of the bustling intersection of 5th Avenue and 21st Street during the morning commute and prompted the police to close the streets of the neighborhood.
The blast sent steam that swirled in the air and rattled the windows and nerves.
WABC The cause of the explosion is under investigation but the age of the 20-inch steam pipe could be the cause of the break.
The blast also disrupted a gas line, a water pipe and caused some electrical blackouts, Nigro said.
A similar steam pipe explosion occurred in central Manhattan nearly 11 years ago on the date of Thursday 's explosion. The steam line broke down on July 18, 2007 on Lexington Avenue, 41st Street, near Grand Central Terminal, killing a woman, wounding 20 people and creating a 25-foot crater that swallowed a tow truck.
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