Steampipe Explosion in Midtown

Here's the most recent article about it from Bloomberg.com:

NYC Says Debris Near Blast Site Positive for Asbestos (Update1)

By Chris Dolmetsch and Henry Goldman

July 19 (Bloomberg) -- New York City told people who work and live by the site of a steam pipe explosion near Manhattan's Grand Central Terminal to stay out of the area after some tests of debris and dust came back positive for asbestos.

The explosion yesterday blew a 25-foot (7.6-meter) hole in 41st Street a block south of Grand Central, killing one person and wounding about 30 people, including three firefighters. The blast snarled traffic in midtown Manhattan during rush hour and halted subway service.

Six of 10 samples of debris and dust taken from the surrounding area last night tested positive for the fire- retardant mineral, which has been found to cause respiratory disease and cancer, the city's Emergency Management Office said in a statement this morning. Eight air samples tested negative.

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The 4, 5 and 6 trains returned to a normal schedule this morning, while skipping Grand Central, the city's busiest subway station. The 42nd Street shuttle was suspended and the 7 line continues to bypass Grand Central.

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The blast occurred shortly before 6 p.m. a block from Grand Central, through which more than 700,000 commuters pass every day, sending plumes of steam and debris into the air and rattling the nerves of a city that is still recovering from the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

About 40 minutes after the event, as a column of steam continued to rise above Lexington Avenue, crowds streamed north, jamming the sidewalks and walking in the street while lugging briefcases and talking anxiously into their cell phones.