Manhattan Times Square (WABC) — A century-old water main ruptured under Seventh Avenue in Midtown, flooding the street and halting service on the 1, 2 and 3 subways through Manhattan.
A 20-inch mainline break at Seventh Avenue at West 40th Street just above the Times Square 42nd Street subway station, which was quickly flooded just after 3 a.m. Tuesday.
The water flows south through the subway system to the 14th Street station, where it sits on top of the tracks.
The 1, 2 and 3 subway service was “significantly disrupted in Manhattan” during the morning commute, creating a travel nightmare for many New Yorkers.
Officials said before noon that subway service for the evening commute would return to normal. The train ran again, but with delays.
MTA officials said there was still some work to be done, but it could be done after evening commutes and overnight hours.
NYC DOT took 90 minutes to plug the water main, causing about 1.8 million gallons of water to flood the system, said NYC DOT Commissioner Rich Davey.
“During the normal peak hours in the morning, there are about 300,000 commuters using lines 1, 2 and 3, which gives you an idea of how many people were affected today and gives you an idea of the magnitude of this water incident,” David said.
In addition to the damage to the subway system, local streets around the break were also flooded, and Seventh Avenue and alleys were closed. Crews demolished the intersection of Seventh Avenue and West 40th Street to access the damaged arterial.
Photos and videos showed part of the Times Square station transformed into a waterfall, with water pouring from the station ceiling and onto the tracks.
The MTA had to shut off power to the station and stop service on the 1, 2 and 3 trains between 14th and 96th streets.
“We were sitting there, and all of a sudden, debris started falling. We thought it was an explosion, but it was water, and everyone started running,” passenger John ElBaradei said.
Built in 1896, the water main spans about 20 inches and is buried at least 10 feet into the ground, officials said.
“It’s a 20-inch main, so it’s a fairly large high-pressure water main, and we don’t know the cause, we’ll know when we identify the leak, cut off part of the pipe and do some forensic analysis,” the Department of Environmental Protection said. Commissioner Rohit Aggarwala said.
The break was a “spaghetti” maze of pipes and wires, including a 48-inch main pipe that luckily survived.
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