Underground fire closes downtown Schenectady street Updated 8:10 am, Thursday, March 30, 2017
A smoldering manhole on State Street in Schenectady, NY, has streets shut down between Clinton Street and Broadway on Thursday, March 30, 2017. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union) Photo: Emily Masters/Times Union Photo: Emily Masters/Times Union
A smoldering manhole on State Street in Schenectady, NY, has streets shut down between Clinton Street and Broadway on Thursday, March 30, 2017. (Skip Dickstein/Times Union)
SCHENECTADY -- An underground electrical fire Thursday morning has closed a section of State Street downtown between Broadway and Clinton Street. Firefighters and National Grid are on the scene in the area near Proctors Theater and the Bow Tie cinemas. Smoke is pouring from a manhole cover. A second manhole cover blew off 30 feet into air early Thursday morning, and a city worker who was nearby said it sounded like an explosion.
Can you imagine if you were sitting at a traffic light over that manhole cover that exploded and it went off under your car? Oh my goodness.
If I am not mistaken Proctors has a electrical power plant under the sidewalks downtown around there somewhere that is why the sidewalks are heated it is from their power plant. No one ever talks about the electrical power plant that Proctors owns. Wonder why? Is Proctors off the grid? Where exactly is the plant located and how is it fueled?
Authorities investigate underground fire in Schenectady on January 5, 2016
SCHENECTADY - Authorities are investigating a possible fire in a manhole on State Street.
The fire began near Clinton Street in the downtown portion of the street. It was unclear if police have closed State Street or any of the nearby cross streets
National Grid focused on repairs after underground manhole fire Jimmy Marlow Published: January 5, 2016, 9:35 pm Updated: January 5, 2016, 11:14 pm
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – A potential disaster was averted in Schenectady on Tuesday after a fire sparked in a manhole near the Proctors Theater.
National Grid crews spent hours repairing underground wires in the manhole. They said they want to prevent a worst incident that could cost people power and money.
National Grid said a cable was smoldering, the gases built up, and caused an underground fire. They said the underground fires are out of their control until an incident happens, and it is brought to their attention.
“There’s things from the street that can end up in those ducts,” Patrick Stella with National Grid said. “There is sewer gas that can build up in those ducts that can spread from those sewer systems into different places underground. Salt from the street can end up in there; a lot of those things that can be corrosive.”
Stella said National Grid services manholes every five years in Upstate New York to try and identify problems and make replacements before anything happens.
Paul Tracy manages Bombers Burrito Bar a half block away from the manhole fire. He said losing power as a result of National Grid making repairs could cost his store a minimum of 400 customers a day.
“That would shut us right down,” he said. “We rely on this grid to stay as steadfast as it is. If we lose power, we’re done. We just shut the door, and we are just losing by the minute at that point.”
In the past, manhole explosions have caused damage to buildings on the street above, but National Grid said that is not a systematic or infrastructure issue. They said not to worry.
“It’s basically a wear and tear issue,” Stella said. “It’s an issue that all utilities with underground systems deal with around the country. It’s basically trying to keep up with the infrastructure and make sure that we do those inspections and make the replacements where we can.”
National Grid asks that people keep an eye out and call them immediately if they see any rumbling or smoking from a manhole
Can you imagine if you were sitting at a traffic light over that manhole cover that exploded and it went off under your car? Oh my goodness.
If I am not mistaken Proctors has a electrical power plant under the sidewalks downtown around there somewhere that is why the sidewalks are heated it is from their power plant. No one ever talks about the electrical power plant that Proctors owns. Wonder why? Is Proctors off the grid? Where exactly is the plant located and how is it fueled?
Quoted Text
Proctors Marquee Energy District - Heating and Cooling Plant
The original boiler plant, designed in 2004, was comprised of two, 250 HP high pressure steam boilers, with future plant space capacity for two additional 250 HP boilers. Distribution to the district plant's customers is high temperature 2400F hot water in an underground distribution system to several buildings in the vicinity of the 400 block of State Street in Schenectady, NY. The boiler steam system was designed for steam usage by the absorption chillers in the plant with the flexibility of future conversion of the steam boiler to hot water in the event the chilled water plant would be converted to centrifugal chillers.
The original 2004 chilled water plant consists of two 500 Ton absorption chillers and one 250 Ton screw chiller, with future plant space capacity for two additional 500 Ton centrifugal chillers. The underground distribution system supplies 420F chilled water to the State Street Area of customers in Downtown Schenectady, NY.
Distribution to the district plant's customers is 240°F medium temperature hot water in an underground distribution system to several buildings in the vicinity of the 400 block of State Street in Schenectady, NY. The recent plant upgrades have increased the plant's heating capacity with two (2) 250 HP and one (1) 109 HP hot water boilers.
The recent 2014 plant upgrades have reconfigured the plant's cooling capacity. The plant now contains two (2) 500 ton centrifugal chillers and one (1) 250 ton screw chiller. The underground distribution system supplies 42°F chilled water to several buildings in the vicinity of the 400 block of State Street in Schenectady, NY.
I never did really understand what the power plant was. i couldn't seem to find info about it but then I was looking under the wrong search terms. Sounds a lot like the heating and cooling system they used in the Alfred E Smith Building in downtown Albany.
Fascinating how powerful water is.
Latest update about the fire says problem was caused by water and salt getting into the system.
Inside of 15 months, there were 2 underground fires in the same area. This recent fire resulting in a manhole cover exploding 30 ft into the air.
If you look at how dilapidated Schenectady infrastructure is above ground, I can only imagine how dilapidated it is underground.
Agree...........they can't/won't even fix a bridge!! Scary!! but hey..........at least they got a casino!!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
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