Janice R. Andrews
A major underground tunnel under New York City’s East River leaked on Wednesday after a city worker accidentally drilled through it. This caused traffic problems and made travellers nervous. Around 12:30 p.m., the accident happened on the Manhattan side of the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, which is a very important route that nearly 100,000 cars use every day.
Warren George, the builder, was drilling underground as part of a project to build a new esplanade next to the UN building. Drilling, on the other hand, accidentally made a 2.5-inch hole in the tunnel’s cast iron covering, which let water spill into the exhaust duct.
Videos quickly spread on social media that showed water pouring into the tube from holes in the ceiling. A driver could be heard asking, “What’s going on here?” as water splashed onto cars going by.
President of MTA Bridges and Tunnels Cathy Sheridan stated that the contractor had drilled through the tunnel’s safety levels, which caused the leak. Lucky for everyone, no one was hurt, and traffic was quickly shifted while the hole was fixed.
Officials said that they are still looking into what happened to figure out how the mistake happened. The tunnel’s equipment should be fully fixed soon, so daily travel should not be too affected.
The Queens-Midtown Tunnel is an important link between Manhattan and Queens. Workers will keep a close eye on it while they figure out how bad the damage is.
