Manhole Fire On 11th Avenue And 17th Street In Windsor Terrace

Neighbor Teresa Lagerman let us know about a manhole fire last night around 9:45pm on 11th Avenue between 17th Street and Prospect Avenue.“We heard three loud sounds, and we joked that there must have been a shooting at the cemetery, but then we heard sirens and they kept coming closer and closer,” said Teresa. “It smelled like fireworks outside.”

Con Edison says that as of this post there are still 281 customers effected by the fire that they are working to restore. They estimated that they would have power restored by noon.

“This was likely heat related,” said Con Edison spokesman Bob McGee. “But we won’t know until we pull the cable and examine it. We always do a post-mortem any time a cable fails.”

McGee also said that incidents like most commonly happen during the second or third day of a 90-plus degree heat wave as the equipment running power heats up.

He recommends that during these heat waves it’s important to use energy wisely. Residents should turn off air conditioners and other unneeded appliances when not at home to take stress off the system whenever possible.

If you see a smoking manhole, call 911 and Con Edison at 1-800-75-CONED immediately.

With additional reporting by Christine Bush.