Third Rail Fire Still A Mystery

This is exactly what subway enthusiasts and watchdogs want: The possibility that a disgruntled employee deliberately unscrewed part of the third rail, which caused part of the third rail to fall over and started the fires that plagued the B/D/F/V line on Wednesday. Well, that was earlier coverage from Newsday, because the NY Times reports that the MTA does not think it was sabotage, simply an accident that caused 15,000 pounds of the third rail to somehow crash onto the track. But if only for a few minutes, the idea that someone would deliberately cause this kind of problem (in this case, unscrewing part of the third rail just enough to keep it upright but not secure enough to withstand trains running over it) makes Gothamist shiver. We're just thankful that no one was injured, and appreciate the hard work MTA crews and employees put into making sure our subways do run.

Still, no one knows how the third rail fell onto the "running track." Gothamist guesses it's the NYC rats, freakishly strong after many years of living off our scraps, trying to scare the MTA and its rodent extermination procedures.

Two subway sites we love: Live from the Third Rail and NYC Subway.