Hundreds of panicked tourists evacuate Times Square in New York City’s renowned Times Square in viral video footage following a manhole explosion that caused heightened carbon monoxide levels.
On April 10, 2022, a massive explosion rocked the Times Square neighbourhood of New York City. People ran in fear when three manhole fires broke out just before 7:00 p.m., resulting in a huge blast, according to viral video posted on social media. So yet, there have been no reports of injuries or property damage, and it looks that authorities have identified the source of the explosion.
Times Square, one of New York City’s most popular and iconic locations, has recently emerged as a hub for crime and other serious incidents. Stunning surveillance film captured a lady forcing a commuter into the path of an approaching train in October of 2021. Christine Hammontree, a 29-year-old woman who went missing after getting into a cab in Times Square in May 2021, was never found. She was discovered uninjured a few days later. In addition, there have been other incidents of gunshot and gun-related violence in the region, one of which resulted in the injury of a newlywed Marine who was on vacation in June 2021.
Gun violence is by far the most serious concern facing the residents of Times Square. Following a series of occurrences, visitors and residents alike were forced to flee in dread from the region. On April 10, a sudden manhole fire brought that anxiety back to the surface for a brief period of time.
What was the source of the explosion?
An ABC 7 spokeswoman reported that “one manhole erupted in the Times Square area this evening due to cable failure, and a second manhole was smouldering” according to the broadcaster. Despite the fact that crews have now left the scene, no explanation has been given for the second or third explosions. Officials with the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) did not provide a reason for the cable failure, but they did state that “there have been no customer outages” at this time.
Authorities discovered excessive carbon monoxide levels during a search of nearby properties, which were reduced by 9:00 p.m., according to authorities. After that, the situation was turned over to utility companies, who may or may not conduct additional investigations into what happened. It is suspected that the fires, which may have been contained beneath the manholes for a period of time before ultimately bursting out, were responsible for the heightened quantities of the deadly gas.
It has been tweeted and reposted several times because one of the videos that went viral was filmed by a woman who was present at the moment of the incident. The sound of the explosion can be heard in the video, which causes widespread fear as people rush to leave.
“People on the internet are claiming that the crowd’s reaction to the explosion in Times Square “didn’t need to be that big”… because they heard an explosion. I’m very sure the last time such a tremendous blast occurred was on September 11, 2001, and there is a war going on right now. I’d f——-g flee, as well “Following the incident, one user expressed his or her thoughts. “Hearing an explosion and getting caught in a swarm of panicked individuals fleeing from Times Square is not a feeling I had ever hoped to experience OMG f—k,” added another. A third individual wrote, “This isn’t my typical tweet, but I was 100 feet away from an explosion in Times Square tonight, and I captured this footage only a few seconds after it happened. I assume the explosion was caused by a fire under the ground. We should be thankful that no one was injured.”
As one observer sarcastically observed, “New York City is actually exploding from the amount of gas it is surrounded by.” Another eyewitness posted on Twitter, “I happened to be directly across the street when the explosion in Times Square occurred. After the explosion, I noticed something in the air. People in a state of complete panic require a second to absorb their surroundings before taking off running. The Fire Department of New York arrived just in time for the explosion.”