Grand Central Station is being evacuated.

[ThomCat]

I'm hearing reports of a huge fire, smoke, possibly a bomb.

Everyone is being evacuated from the building. Lots of yelling and screaming.

I'm not seeing any news on the local news sites yet, but it's causing havoc here in the neighborhood.

[babylonsister]

1. Crap; thanks for the heads-up and stay inside! nt

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

2. Grand Central Station?

I think there's a shitload of transfromers under Grand Central. I suspect it's just an electrical explosion.

[ThomCat]

8. That makes sense. Given the deluge we're experiencing

electrical problems are very likely. But even if that's all it is, this is going to play havoc with a huge number of people. That's one of the largest, busiest transit hubs in the entire city.

I have no idea how I'm getting home, and my commute is already 2 hours on good days. :(

[Infomaniac]

28. Hubby and I were stuck on a E train for 2 and a half hours today.

If you can get to Queens, we have space.

[ThomCat]

34. I'm going to have to walk across town to get anywhere.

And I'm in horrible shape because of this weather. I'm not sure I can make it across town. I don't know what I can do at this point.

Thank you. :hug:

But if the 1 and 9 are running then I should be able to get home. It's just walking those 8 blocks across town in the rain on crutches. :(

The crowds outside the working stations are nuts, so I'm stuck here in the office for a few hours regardless. By then, maybe the cabs will be out in force to pick up the slack.

[Cha]

47. Good Luck, man!

Hey, I'm vegan, too! :)

[ThomCat]

49. Thank you!

It's good to know who we are. :pals:

[Infomaniac]

64. The 1/9 at 50 street has the shortest number of stairs

Have the cabby make the turn onto Broadway from 51st and drop you on the west side of the street. The entrance is in the middle of the block. I'm watching the news and people are being warned away from the immediate area. The concern is asbestos exposure.

[ThomCat]

70. I couldn't get a cab to save my life.

I walked over to 50th and caught the 1. You'd think they'd put a few extra trains in service, but they didn't. Long wait, lots of people.

I'm home, not doing so well, waiting for meds to kick in. But at least I'm home.

[NYC Liberal]

46. Wow, was it the rain this morning?

[Infomaniac]

63. Yes, the rain caused the delay

We spent more than 2 hours stuck on a E train. The E train went out of service at 74th/Roosevelt where we were told by transit officials to take the 7. There was a stalled Manhattan-bound 7 in the station. We ended up in the street trying to hail a gypsy cab. The driver could have gouged us. We were ready to pay $100 bucks for the trip to Mid-town. The driver charged us $20 and we gave him a $10 tip. The whole commute - normally 50 minutes door to door - took us 3 and a half hours.

[NYC Liberal]

65. I got stuck on a 2 train last August,

when a transformer blew at Times Square because of the heat. I was stuck for almost 2 hours there. We were actually at Canal Street but of course we were on the middle express track so nobody could get out. No power so no way to move. And I had someone waiting for me at Penn Station!

[Infomaniac]

67. I wouldn't wish that on anybody,

At least we had power.

[NYC Liberal]

44. Man I feel for you. I work right near GC and I literally left at like 5:15

and the explosion was reported I think around 5:50.

Good luck, man! Hope you get out soon...these kinds of things suck. I was stuck on the subway for 2 hours last August when another transformer (or something) blew 'cause of the heart.

[Maddy McCall]

3. I'm watching New York CBS and NBC right now...

switching between the two....nothing being reported.

Please keep us updated. Thanks, Thom.

[Maddy McCall]

13. CBS now reporting it.

Local CBS news now reporting it.

[C_U_L8R]

4. transformer explosion

according to 1010

[peacebird]

11. ahhh - that makes sense... heard of tornado on Long Island this am ...?

[IChing]

20. Decepti-cons did it.

they are the bad transformers.

[aquart]

5. Transformer explosion.

41st bt 3rd and Lex. One confirmed injury.

[The Stranger]

10. Do we need a "War Against Transformers"? Or a "War Against Electricity"?

We need to fight the Transformers over there so we don't have to fight them over here.

Electricity hates us for our freedoms.

[Bjornsdotter]

14. If that what it is

...I feel very sorry for whoever was nearby, a friend of mine was working on one when it exploded...just horrible.

cheers

[rucky]

75. To promote the new movie?

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

6. It Can't Be Terrorists

We're fighting them over there, so they don't attack us over here.

[PA Democrat]

7. MSNBC Breaking News: Explosion reported in midtown Manhattan. No link yet

[PA Democrat]

9. "Building said to have collapsed"

[wundermaus]

12. building collapsed?!

Explosion reported in midtown Manhattan; building said to have collapsed -
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/

[brettdale]

15. NOTHING ON cnn YET

wHAT WAS IT?

[Ron Green]

16. Transformers!

More than meets the eye.

Robots in disguise.

[BeHereNow]

17. IRAN did it! Run Dick, run...

I put nothing past Dick.
He would love to blame Iran for this.
You KNOW he would...

BHN

[Maddy McCall]

18. UPDATE: officials aren't sure what happened.

Looks like maybe a steam pipe erupted. Can't say exactly what caused the explosion. 2 injured.

Firefighters are fighting a 4-alarm fire right now.

[The Stranger]

19. We need a "War on Steam"

[slackmaster]

21. I think it was LILOP

Let It Leak On Purpose.

[PA Democrat]

22. 41st & 3rd Ave. Either a steam pipe, transformer or manhole cover.

NOT terrorism per MSNBC.

[flyarm]

23. saying accidental weather releated!

[flyarm]

24. 43rd & lexington is what saying on NBC NY

[flyarm]

25. and they keep saying manhole explosion..with lots of steam or smoke..

[ThomCat]

29. All the people coming back to the office are reporting smoke.

[ThomCat]

26. I'm hearing 41st and Lexington.

Given all the tunnels that converge on Grand Central (42nd and Lexington) I would not be surprised if this problem spreads over several blocks.

This whole area is ground to a halt. I guess I'm stuck in the office for a while tonight.

[flyarm]

30. i think some are guessing..i heard 41st & lex first then changed to 43rd & lex..

and then they just said near Chrysler building

[flyarm]

27. steam pipe explosion..they are saying white smoke good thing..near

Crysler building

[flyarm]

32. city hall and nypd..steam pipe explosion and now 4 alarm fire

[NYC Liberal]

31. Holy crap, I literally JUST came from there!!

I took the subway from Grand Central like 45 minutes ago. I know a ton of people who work right there!

[flyarm]

33. steam gaining in intensity..what they are saying now..

[flyarm]

35. trains passing through grand central but not stopping

[flyarm]

36. now saying between 40th & 41st and lex and enormous force

now brown material coming up with steam..people with mud like substance on them

[flyarm]

39. large hole in road on Lex...

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

37. That's a neat trick.

Grand Central's really a terminal, not a station.

[ThomCat]

43. It's not the end of the line for any trains except the 7.

Almost every train that comes to Grand Central passes through.

[NYC Liberal]

60. For commuter rails it is. But for subways, you're right.

The 7 also passes through though...Fifth Avenue and Times Square, which is the last stop.

[ThomCat]

61. My mistake. You are right.

All the subways pass through. But the Metro North lines end at Grand Central. :)

[wundermaus]

38. video no audio

http://www.cnn.com/video/live/live.html?stream=stream3

link on the right has audio

[flyarm]

40. i am listening fox 5 ny..nbc had cut off for national news

and i am typing it as they say it...they have someone on the ground 1 block away

[kowanda32]

53. Thanks!!

[Marrah_G]

42. It doesn't look like anyone's been hurt

Hugs to you though, has to be scary as hell for New Yorkers to see a huge plume of smoke in Manhattan. I know it made my heart skip a beat and I'm up in Boston. Glad you made it home before they shut down the station.

[NYC Liberal]

48. It isn't even the whole TERRA TERRA thing - I'd be worried no matter what

Whenever you hear about an explosion or something like that you always do. I am glad nobody was hurt - right at Grand Central/42nd Street, and in rush hour, that's pretty remarkable!

[Marrah_G]

51. Yes it is

CNN is now saying a couple injuries though, but they've been known to be wrong. NYFD is amazing though, they always seem to have their stuff together. I'm glad the city came out and said not terrorism right away.

[NYC Liberal]

56. Yeah, I've seen fire trucks going by outside of my window (at home).

I know the whole terra thing is cliched and seems stupid, but it is kind of understandable that some would have it cross their minds if they're right here in the city and an explosion happens at Grand Central.

[Marrah_G]

57. It's not cliche and stupid

It would have been my very first thought.

Here is my very blunt opinion: We have pissed off a huge amount of religious zealots and if I were trying to do alot of damage in one shot I would pick Manhattan. People stacked on people stacked on people. Very diverse population that someone of any nationality can blend into. Huge financial center and known around the world. For the biggest bang for the buck they will always hit NYC or one of our other very dense cities.

[NYC Liberal]

58. Well by that I meant that when something like this happens,

people mock the "Ooooh terra!!1" but yes, it's a very real concern when you're right in the middle of it. After 9.11, when you're living here and you hear of an explosion at Grand Central, of all places, you do get worried. NYC, Boston, Chicago, LA, and DC are probably the most likely targets if there IS another attack.

Besides, you get worried either way whether it's an attack or not.

[Marrah_G]

59. Yup, I agree with everything you said

[ThomCat]

62. Anyone who lives here probably knows

3 or 4 ways you could easily shut down huge parts of this city. There are a lot of vulnerable targets, and we pass through them every day. It's hard to live here and NOT know how vulnerable we are.

I think you are right, that NYC will continue to be one of the targets of choice.

[NYC Liberal]

66. It's scary when you think how Manhattan is an island, and if there was a

major attack/disaster, it would be damn near impossible to get off. You'd be stuck unless you wanted to swim - good luck with that.

[slackmaster]

41. Sounds like a real clusterfuck

NYC is crowded enough when things are going smoothly.

[leftynyc]

45. I'm watching coverage on ABC (channel 7 in NY)

Tons of steam and what looks like dirt still pouring out of the street. The hole looks to be 20 feet wide. I caught a train at Grand Central at 5:30.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

50. This is an appetizer...

(I know -- not a terra 'tack, but) main course is still cooking in dick's hidey-hole.

[ThomCat]

55. The idea that cheney mighy use our city's tragedies to

further his own sick agenda really Pisses Me Off! x(

I don't doubt that he will if he can.

[and-justice-for-all]

52. False Flag situation!! nt

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

54. Is a certain Chimp somewhere out there reading "My Pet Goat"?

[lpbk2713]

69. He probably hauled ass in Air Farce One.

And he won't be back until Uncle Dick tells him all is safe.

Then he'll go hug a fireman with a bullhorn in his hand.

[Decruiter]

68. This was just a test. Breaking.... This was a test of our "HOMELAND SECURITY FIRST RESPONSE SYSTEM"

THIS WAS A TEST. Everyone be calm, go home, on the way, stop and get the necessary duct tape, sheeting and water, MRE's, once again, this was just a test.

Everyone panicked enough yet?

MFBs'tds.

Damn.

[CarolNYC]

71. I'm glad to hear the other NYers here got home safely...

The office I work in is on the 10th floor of the building on the southwest corner of 41st and Lex, right where the explosion occurred.

I was just getting ready to leave work when we heard the explosion. It sounded like thunder at first but it was VERY loud and it went on and on. WTF?!?! the four of us left in the office thought. Then we saw the rocks and stuff starting to hit the window and all kinds of stuff flying through the air and figured it was time to get out.

My fellow building mates for the most part were pretty calm. We walked down the stairs and then spent about 30-40 minutes in the lobby and the basement of the building trying to figure out how to get out without getting injured. There was still all kinds of stuff flying through the air and the noise kept going on and on and no one knew for sure what happened but there were people walking around the lobby covered in mud and blood and they said that whatever it was came up from under the ground and exploded into the air.

The firemen, when they came, were great. Very in control, very calm, very calming. I love them. They assured us that "This is OK. Everyone will be alright." Then they cut through a gate to get us an entrance we could crawl out of so we could run into and through the bulidng next door and out onto 40th Street where at least the stuff wasn't flying.

I hate to admit it becuase I like to consider myself pretty tough but I think I'm a bit traumatized by the whole experienced. It's hard to explain how horrible it really was being trapped in that building with that chaos going on all around us, not knowing what else might explode.

I'm sure 9/11 went through everyone's mind and the possibily of it being an attack had to pass through some at least quickly but no one was talking terror as we waited. Everyone was talking steam pipes and transformers and stuff.

Scary thing is, the infrastructure in the city is all so ancient something like that could happen just about anywhere any time. I think I'm going to have a hard time getting that out of my head as I walk around tthe streets of NYC for a while.

[ThomCat]

72. I'm glad to hear that everything was calm and under control

where you were.

I'm not that close. I'm 4 blocks north of Grand Central and one block east. I didn't see anything. I just heard from everyone coming back.

The people I feel sorry for are the people who take Metro North to get home. What alternate transit to they have? :shrug:

[CarolNYC]

73. Yeah, I don't know about them...

I also feel bad for the people who live in that area and can't get into their apartments.

[Cassandra]

74. I was downtown and got to the subway at about 7.

They said I had to take the N or the R and change to the 6 at 59th St, which I did. It felt like a weird annoyance. They didn't say a word about an explosion. They called it an above-ground incident.

[ThomCat]

76. Hi Cassandra

I'm glad you weren't near there. :hi:

I am guessing that it's policy not to give out details about major incidents to avoid panic. If someone found out, even hours later, that there had been an explosion near grand central you just know some people would freak out.

[Cassandra]

77. Hi Thom.

I'm glad the rain let up for you. I was shopping around Union Sq., totally oblivious. My quick scoot up on the 4 or 5 became a slog. At least at 14th I had another option.

[ProgressiveEconomist]

78. did it snow asbestos again? as on 26th

st a few yrs ago?

[leftynyc]

79. I've been listening to a report for that

and have heard nothing. I catch a train to Grand Central in around an hour and as near as I can figure, the frozen zone is 38-42nd, and Vanderbilt to 3rd ave. No pedestrians. I'm going to have to walk north and then south (work on Park bet 32nd and 33rd).

[ProgressiveEconomist]

80. "Water hammer" and ConEd asbestos coverup again? SLIDESHOW at URL

http://cbs11tv.com/topstories/topstories_story_200060732.html :

"Millions of pounds of steam are pumped beneath New York City streets every hour, heating and cooling thousands of buildings, including the Empire State Building.

The steam pipes have proven prone to rupture before. A steam pipe explosion near Gramercy Park in 1989 killed three people and spewed loads of asbestos into the air - a fact that Con Ed later admitted it concealed for days while residents were exposed.

That explosion was caused by a condition known as "water hammer," in which water condenses in a closed section of pipe. The sudden mix of hot steam and cool water can cause pressure to skyrocket, bursting the pipe."