There's a fascinating obituary about architectural historian Charles Lockwood in the NY Times today. Lockwood, who passed away last week at age 63 from cancer, wrote several books about architecture, but he is best known for Bricks and Brownstone: The New York Row House, 1783-1929. It turns out he wrote the book because a New York Public Library librarian told him in 1969, when he was a Princeton student, that there were no books about brownstones, "We don’t have one. It’s never been written." more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] A Queens man died this morning and an explosive device may have been the cause. FDNY tells us that around 9:28 a.m. a call came in regarding a firecracker explosion at 112-20 111th Avenue, a home near the Aqueduct Racetrack. Authorities then suspected it was a shotgun discharge, but now believe it is related to fireworks or other explosive devices, although the investigation is ongoing. The man, describes as a white male in his 50s, was found dead at the scene. more ›

Don't panic! A little after 10 a.m. Battery Park City residents got a touch worried when they heard what sounded like an explosion. Multiple people called 911 in concern. But while there was a loud noise this morning, it wasn't anything to worry about: The explosion was actually a cannon being fired as part of the Castle Clinton bicentennial celebration! more ›

Police have arrested Michael Reyes, 24, and Dominique Robinson, 28, in relation to the explosion that knocked the walls off a Staten Island home early Tuesday morning. According to a police source Reyes had been stripping an empty apartment in the building of pipes—including an active gas line—and inadvertently filled the vacant apartment with gas. When Reyes allegedly returned to the apartment 40 minutes later with Robinson to "take some pipe" things went boom. more ›

While authorities were concerned that a man suspected of bombing a California synagogue was headed to NYC, the 60-year-old "transient" was found in Ohio—at a Jewish Center in Cleveland Heights—and arrested. And it turns out the FBI got the tip thanks to NYC-based Orthodox news blog: The tipster told Vos Iz Neias that their site "is my favorite. It’s the news on VIN that made me aware of this story, so from the photo of the story posted earlier today, I recognized Ron Hirsch and called the FBI immediately." more ›

Two people have been sent to the hospital with burns after a propane tank exploded in the Frites 'n' Meats food truck, which today was parked on the West Side Highway. The truck reportedly hit another vehicle, and the explosion caused two to be hospitalized with non-life threatening burns. The truck is run by brothers Hiassam, Mohamed and Ali Beydoun, and one behind the Twitter account recently wrote, "If anyone has any info on my brothers location or status please call me." more ›

Now that you've seen these beautiful photos of the city's sandhogs, here's a video of what they do all day. Namely, make things explode. NYC Water just uploaded this video from 2007 of a "Drill and Shoot” excavation at the Croton Water Filtration Plant, which will provide the city with clean drinking water once it is complete. NYC Water explains, "The blasting helped create the raw water tunnel that will bring water from the Croton Watershed in Westchester into the plant for filtration before it makes its way to homeowners' taps in the Bronx and Manhattan." But won't somebody please think of the crustaceans! more ›

An explosion at Moscow's Domodedovo Airport has left at lead 31 people dead and 130 injured. The explosion reportedly occurred in a baggage area, and CNN reports, "In a post on its website, the Russian Investigative Committee is blaming terrorists for the attack." According to the NY Times, "The airport, southeast of the capital, is Russia’s largest hub for international travelers, with more than 20 million passengers passing through last year... Russian news agencies, citing witnesses, said airport halls were filled with so much smoke that it was difficult to count the dead." more ›

A huge explosion rocked San Bruno, a suburb a few miles from the San Francisco International Airport, after 6 p.m. Pacific time. SFist has been compiling photos and reports—at first, it was speculated that a plane crashed, but it turns out it may be from a gas line explosion. It's now a six-alarm fire; people were evacuated, the fire is "jumping from house to house," and there may already be looters. One report said, "There is no fighting this fire. It is unbelievable. I've never seen anything like it." SFist agreed, "It's just one large fireball shooting from the ground." more ›

Police have identified Philip Boney-Scrivano as the victim of yesterday's fiery crash on Staten Island, and Jean Carlos Aleman as the 25-year-old passenger who miraculously walked away. The two had reportedly been at a birthday party earlier in the night, and decided to drag race friend Korey Swatz and another passenger on their way to the White Castle in Stapleton. However, Boney-Scrivano jumped the curb at Bay Street and crashed into the Citgo gas station. The Staten Island Advance says, "The driver's side of his 2009 Honda Accord bore the brunt of the impact, which was so powerful that his body was ripped apart." more ›

A 20-year-old was brutally killed in a car crash during a drag race against his girlfriend's brother in Staten Island early this morning. The victim was driving a Honda Accord around 130 mph while turning the corner at Bay Street and Hannah Street, and jumped the curb and slammed into a gas pump. The crash set off an explosion, and the Staten Island Advance says, "The impact was so powerful that body parts separated from the man's torso." more ›

A Bronx senior center worker was killed yesterday after a barbecue grill he was cleaning exploded with a blast powerful enough to shatter nearby windows. Joseph McLendon, an employee of the Comprehensive Care Management Center in Bronxdale, reportedly set off a chemical explosion after using the wrong kind of cleaning agents on the propane grill. Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Scanlon told the Daily News, "It was a huge, huge blast...It's a miracle more people were not hurt." more ›

Yesterday's "explosion" scare was caused by a piece of glass—anywhere from 30 x 30 to 25 x 90— that fell from the 52nd floor of the Galleria on 117 East 57th street. The glass plane hit balconies as it fell and eventually crashed through a glass atrium on the 10th floor. Police say the glass was most likely pushed out by strong winds, but witnesses say the crash was so loud it sounded like an explosion. One passerby told the Post, "I was standing outside and I heard a crash. It was like the loudest thunder I ever heard." more ›

Update: Reports initially came in on a kitchen explosion at 117 East 57th Street, but the latest news says the "explosion" was falling broken glass and molding most likely due to wind. However, there were reports of jumpers on the 58th Street side of the building, and searches are currently being conducted. There are no reported injuries at this time, and NotifyNYC says to expect street closures in the area. more ›

A 31-year-old man has burns over 70% of this body when his garage workshop in the Whitestone section of Queens exploded yesterday at 7 p.m. The explosion was so strong, the garage's roof blew off and WCBS 2 reports, "Witnesses said the explosion sent shockwaves throughout the neighborhood and one woman added that a vase full of flowers was knocked over inside her house -- and she lives three blocks away." more ›

At least two manholes caught fire after exploding on Water Street (between Adams and Washington Streets) and on Washington Street in DUMBO around 3:15 today. One witness tells us "one of the manhole covers flew several stories off the ground. There was fire before but now just a lot of black smoke." The FDNY seems to have the situation under control, and there don't appear to be any injuries reported, but when something similar happened last month in midtown, Thom Yorke fans were tragically inconvenienced. more ›

While the government believes that Times Square car bomb suspect Faisal Shahzad was trained and inspired by the Pakistan Taliban, the group's spokesman denied any link, telling CBS News, "This is a noble job and we pray that all the Muslim youths should follow Faisal Shahzad. But he is not part of our network," adding that the plot was "hatched by the U.S. and its allies to trap Muslim and Pushtun youth in terrorist activities" and promised to "launch attacks against the U.S. and its allies with a new zeal and style The U.S. and its European allies are our target." more ›

A spokesman for Con Ed says that yesterday's manhole explosion and fire—which reportedly shot flames three stories into the air on West 40th Street—was caused by a burnout on secondary cables that carry 13,000 volts of electricity. The fire started around 1:40 p.m., prompting the evacuation of roughly 300 people from nearby buildings and concern about carbon monoxide levels in one nearby building. Coming on the heels of the failed Times Square car bombing, some people in the area are on edge. more ›

At 11:45 p.m. last night, law enforcement officials arrested a 30-year-old Connecticut resident for allegedly driving a Nissan Pathfinder filled with gasoline, propane, M88 firecrackers, and non-explosive fertilizer to Times Square on Saturday night. The U.S. Attorney's office said that Faisal Shahzad, "a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Pakistan, was taken into custody at John F. Kennedy International Airport after he was identified by the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Customs and Border Protection while attempting to take a flight to Dubai." more ›

The Connecticut license plates on the SUV matched a Ford; according to WFSB, "The investigation led agents to a scrapyard in Stratford and a shoreline car dealership. Police said the Pathfinder could have been sold from Thomas Anthony Auto in Bridgeport at some point. The SUV's vehicle identification number led officials to the dealership... Police were also at Kramer's scrapyard in Stratford in a search to hunt down the license plates, which they said came off a pickup truck." more ›

The NYPD released a 19-second video of a man who was caught looking around in a furtive manner in the hours before a car bomb was found in Times Square on Saturday night. While Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the man could be totally innocent, the police are hoping the public may be able to identify the figure, a white man in his 40s, who takes off a dark shirt (revealing a red shirt), puts it into a bag, and walks down Shubert Alley (which runs between 44th and 45th Streets), or that the man will come forward. The Nissan Pathfinder SUV that was found with M88 fireworks, gasoline, propane, alarm clocks and non-explosive fertilizer was parked on West 45th Street. more ›

While the Pakistani Taliban claimed credit for the Times Square car bomb found last night, today the police said there's no evidence of any link so far. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said, "Although we have not yet determined whether the Times Square car bomb is linked to any specific terrorist organization, we are working very closely with the FBI through the Joint Terrorist Task Force on this case." more ›

Part of Times Square is closed earlier tonight due a Nissan Pathfinder, parked on West 45th Street near 7th Avenue, that was apparently smoking. WCBS 2 reports, "As a precaution, the bomb squad was brought to the scene and was using a robot to inspect the package. Sources say the robot got up close to the package but that its inspection was inconclusive. Bomb squad personnel then suited up and went in." However, witnesses tell WABC 7 they heard an explosion and saw smoke between 6 and 6:30 p.m., "It was a boom and a puff of smoke," while a firefighter said, "The SUV was smoking. There was a flash and we put two and two together" which then led to an evacuation. more ›

A 70-year-old suffered serious burns after his Jeep Cherokee exploded on Charles Street in New Rochelle. According to WABC 7, "Flames shot from the car as neighbors ran outside to help the victim. Eyewitness News is told he was rushed to Jacobi Medical Center with serious injuries, although he was expected to survive." And the Journal News says the man, who had just left a social club, had turned on the ignition when the car burst into flames. The New Rochelle police said, "We do not think it was a bomb," and the ATF is investigating also (the FBI has ruled out terrorism). more ›

A home in South Amboy, NJ exploded this afternoon. According to the Star-Ledger, "Authorities are still investigating the incident. It’s unclear if anyone was injured, though neighbor Daniel Mathias said he saw a man, his face covered with debris, being carried out on a stretcher." more ›