Asbestos and Aging Pipes Remain Buried Hazards

Exploding steam pipes and manhole covers popping loose and flying skyward, a constant in New York for decades, had all but disappeared in recent years.

But the city got a reminder of the vulnerability of its aging infrastructure yesterday when a 24-inch steam pipe that was laid in 1924 exploded in Midtown near Grand Central Terminal, leaving one person dead and more than 30 injured. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said cold water apparently got into the pipe, producing a change in pressure and the blast. Because the pipe was near a water main, the explosion sent water, steam and debris skyward.

Kevin Burke, chief executive of Consolidated Edison, which operates the city’s steam network, said that during rainstorms yesterday pipes could have been surrounded by cold water, causing dangerous condensation.

Mr. Burke said that 11 valves in the network of pipes feeding the area were shut, cutting off steam to 15 to 20 buildings nearby. There was no work being done on the pipes before the incident, but after the morning rain, crews inspected them and found nothing of concern.The pipe that burst is part of an underground network that Con Edison acquired in the mid-1950s, when it absorbed the old New York Steam Corporation, which started selling steam to Manhattan buildings in 1882. The steam company’s huge generating plants once powered elevators. But as electricity became more widely available the demand for steam power leveled off.

Now the steam is used to spin turbines that make electricity in Con Edison plants. After that, it is piped to about 1,800 customers in Manhattan, mainly large buildings. In most cases, the steam provides heating and, with the help of compressors, air-conditioning.

The event yesterday stoked fears not just because of the power of the blast, but because many of the city’s oldest steam pipes are covered with asbestos for insulation, and those around the accident could be at risk if they inhale significant amounts of tainted air.
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