Yesterday morning, a fire broke out at 55 Water Street, a 54-story office skyscraper in the Financial District known for being very friendly to baby falcons. At least 27 people suffered from smoke inhalation due to the 9:30 a.m. basement fire.
The building has been without power since Hurricane Sandy struck on October 29—many of the businesses there are running on generators—and most of those injured were utility workers trying to restore power. The FDNY said, "The fire at 55 Water Street was caused by a short in a feeder cable, which was re-energized this morning as part of repair work to electrical cables damaged during the storm." In other words, the water-damaged electrical work shorted out.
And Con Ed said, "The problems were on the customer side." City Room reports, "In the aftermath of the storm, utilities in the region have had to wait to turn the power back on in damaged homes and businesses until the electrical wiring inside is repaired by the individual owners. 'They have to be ready to accept our services,' [Con Ed spokesman Allan] Drury said."
The building's management said, "It's a 3.8-million-square-foot building. These things happen."
