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A blog by someone who doesn't like or understand blogs.
A major theme of this blog is the love affair between the blogger and the city of New York.
Email me at david [at] danzig [dot] com.
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Wednesday, March 26, 2003
ON THE HOMEFRONT LINES.
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There was just an explosion in Times Square, about 500 feet from my apartment.
I've felt a little jumpy, lately, about living right at Times Square, an obvious terrorist target. Lately, I've been better about not jumping and checking out the window every time a garbage can gets rattled or some thunder strikes. But this was definitely different, the unmistakable sound of a loud, nearby explosion. I went to my balcony window, and saw a plume of smoke rising above Broadway about level with my balcony up on the 23rd floor. I went downstairs, and people were saying that it was a Con Edison (the electric company) explosion. I went around the block, and was told by some witnesses that a manhole cover blew off the manhole and hit the roof and fell back to the sidewalk.
The explosion took place on 53rd Street at Broadway at the corner nearest my apartment. My apartment is on Broadway between 54th Street and 55th Street. The explosion was adjacent to the Ed Sullivan theater, which is where The Late Show with David Letterman is taped. Someone who worked at the show said that they probably wouldn't tape the show tonight, because of the explosion. Also, a crew member from La Boheme, across the street at The Broadway Theater expressed doubt about whether they'd have a performance tonight either.
I don't know if this was terrorism related or not. It's been about an hour, but there's been not a word about it on New York One, the 24-hour New York news channel, though I did see a NY1 reporter on the scene. According to a health worker on the scene who I spoke with, there were some minor injuries but no major ones.
Here are some pictures I took:
Firefighters and police arrived on the scene and cut off traffic within about one minute after the explosion.
A large crowd formed in front of the Ed Sullivan Theater, which was adjacent to the explosion.
This was where the explosion occurred. The manhole cover was blown off of this manhole, which was still smoldering more than half an hour later. Note how the ground is scorched at the edges of the hole.
This is the cover, blown off the manhole.
A wider shot, showing both the hole and the blown-off cover.
The view from my balcony. After about an hour, police and firefighters had just opened one lane of traffic on Broadway. The near corner, on the bottom of the picture, is 54th and Broadway, where I live. The far corner is 53rd and Broadway, where the explosion occurred, on the right behind the building.
link to this item: http://www.creamy.com/blog/2003/03/on-homefront-lines.html
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