Just before noon a reader wrote in from 6th Avenue and 20th Street saying, "Lots of emergency vehicles. People in the street. Smoke billowing out the north side (20th st.) of the building. 6th ave traffic messed up." Word over the newswire was the fire, at 641 6th Avenue, was sparked by a manhole explosion. Another reader, who works in that building, told us they were evacuated because of a fire in the subway; she also notes a "huge fireball" reached the 5th floor. Con Ed and the FDNY are on the scene.
According to Fox 5 NY, the incident took place around 11:30 a.m. and "the front of a Radio Shack store was smoldering in the aftermath. There was damage to several floor above the store." The FDNY told them it was a manhole explosion that sparked the transformer fire. No injuries have been reported, but Radio Shack, Bally's Total Fitness and Apex Technical School have all been damaged. Currently 6th Avenue between West 14th and 20th streets is closed.
