SOLTuesday: Gas Leak?!

            Last Friday evening, there began a terrible drilling noise nearby. At first, I thought it was construction on the building directly across the street, a former SRO (single room occupancy) that had been vacant for at least 20 years until it was bought by Columbia University and it being renovated to become a dorm.

            But no, this was in front of the private school next door to my building, and some Con Ed workers were breaking up the sidewalk. Why? There might be a gas leak. Of course, a gas leak has to be investigated—immediately. The drilling went on for a few hours, and then a truck with a generator ran for another few hours, at least until 1 a.m.

            Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and today, the drilling has stopped, but workers are digging down under the pavement, and piles of dirt, brick, and miscellaneous debris were first shoveled onto the adjacent sidewalk, and then onto the street.

            A long stretch of sidewalk has been closed off (in addition to the street being closed to traffic since Sunday), with a sign at one end saying “Walkway closed Use other side” — except you can’t use the sidewalk across the street because that’s where the Columbia University renovation is being done.

            Today, I saw workers sawing a large pipe, maybe three or four inches in diameter, which I’m hoping will be replacing the pipe that’s leaking. Any gas leak needs to be fixed ASAP, before some careless person creates a spark. So glad that many fewer people smoke cigarettes these days. And school doesn’t open until after Labor Day, so there's a few more days left.

            This all made me think of David Macauley's wonderful book Underground, with many drawings of what is under our feet in the city. I wonder if any of the Con Ed workers read that book as children.  

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