City shut down by monsoon rains

While much of South Asia continues to suffer from record monsoon rains, New York was taken out of service this morning by a downpour of around three inches. The morning commute did not happen, and we observed thousands hoofing it to downtown Manhattan, in an eerie reverse of 9/11. Dozens were lined up at bus stops, worried brows wondering how they could push their way to the front when an overcrowded bus would arrive. Phalanxes of office warriors attempted to hail phantom taxis, none bothering to ask the next person ten feet down the street, Want to share a cab? Where did that MTA strike solidarity go? Today we weren't all in this together; it wasn't the heat, it was the humidity.

We watched Con Ed bleeding massive quantities of steam from fat pipes situated at various points throughout Manhattan, perhaps in response to the chief steam guy's tepid testimony before City Council yesterday. As of this writing (11:15 am) the MTA home page would not load—apparently their servers in addition to their trains were flooded? We also heard that the Biblical floods knocked out elevators at the luxury high-rise known as the Time Warner Center. As of 1 pm, cars and trucks were still ignoring traffic lights and creating massive gridlock. Perhaps if you were unable to make it to work today—the MTA suggested you stay home—you might read up on the South Asia monsoon. The BBC reminds us that "Monsoons occur every year in many countries around the world - northern Australia, Africa, South America and the US are also affected." Finally, although the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning at 6:50 am it took most of the day for NWS to confirm what residents of Bay Ridge already knew: a tornado had indeed struck 20 minutes earlier.

photo: traffic lights optional on Canal Street today

Tags:   con edison, monsoon, time warner center

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Posted on 8/8/2007 ( Permanent Link )
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