A century-old water main broke under Seventh Avenue in Midtown, flooding streets and effectively suspending number 1, 2 and 3 subway service through Manhattan.The 20-inch main broke at Seventh Avenue at West 40th Street, just above the Times Sq 42nd St subway station, which quickly flooded just after 3 a.m. Tuesday.
The water flowed south through the subway system to the 14th Street station, where it settled above the rail.Number 1, 2 and 3 subway service was “severely disrupted in Manhattan” through the morning commute, creating a travel nightmare for many New Yorkers.
Officials said just before noon that subway service would be back to normal for the evening commute. Trains were running once again but with delays.
There is still some work to be done, but that can be completed after the evening commute and on overnight hours, MTA officials said.NYC Transit President Rich Davey said the city DEP took 90 minutes to cap the water main which caused approximately 1.8 million gallons to flood the system.
“Approximately 300,000 customers use the 1, 2 and 3 line on a regular rush hour morning, that gives you a sense of how many folks were impacted today, give you a sense of how significant a water event this was,” Davey said.
Aside from the damage to the subway system, local streets around the break were covered with water, closing Seventh Avenue and side streets. Crews tore up the intersection of Seventh Avenue and West 40th Street to reach the broken main.
Part of the Times Square station turned into a waterfall as photos and video showed water flooding in from the ceiling of the station and pouring onto the tracks.Multiple streets near Times Square are closed and service on the 1 train has been suspended. Derick Waller reports.
The MTA had to shut down power at the station and they halted service on the 1, 2, and 3, trains between 14th and 96th streets. “We were sitting there and all of the sudden, debris started coming down. We thought it was an explosion, but it was actually water and everybody started running,” said passenger John Balady. Officials said that the water main is from 1896 and spans about 20 inches at least 10 feet under ground.
