New York:
Thirty gallons of bleach spilled on the top floor of a Times Square skyscraper on Sunday night, prompting a flood of emergency vehicles and the closure of six blocks on Seventh Avenue for about an hour.
Two workers treating the water system at Astor Plaza, at 1515 Broadway, had to undergo decontamination after a machine malfunctioned and sent 30 gallons of hydrogen peroxide flowing onto the 54th floor, according to police and fire officials. Though the substance can cause sever burns, the workers did not suffer injuries and refused medical treatment.
The Fire Department responded to the chemical spill at 8:38 p.m., a spokesman said. But a hazardous-materials call prompted about a dozen Fire Department vehicles to arrive on the street around 10 p.m., and the police closed Seventh Avenue to pedestrians and traffic between 42nd and 48th Streets.
As a greeter at the Swatch store at Broadway and 45th Street, Naytira Baker, 19, is supposed to show off watches. But the bewildered Times Square crowd was more interested in the spectacle across the street, she said.
Told of the cause of the emergency response, Ms. Baker said, "I don't think it was that big of a deal for all those trucks to be here."
She added: "Or maybe that cleaning stuff was harmful. It was a show for the tourists, though."
By around 11:30, the area was clean, the Fire Department spokesman said, and people would be allowed to work there Monday morning.
On May 1, a similar scene unfolded with more unsettling results: the police discovered a failed car bomb in Times Square. A naturalized United States citizen from Pakistan, Faisal Shahzad, was arrested in the attempted bombing.
Two workers treating the water system at Astor Plaza, at 1515 Broadway, had to undergo decontamination after a machine malfunctioned and sent 30 gallons of hydrogen peroxide flowing onto the 54th floor, according to police and fire officials. Though the substance can cause sever burns, the workers did not suffer injuries and refused medical treatment.
The Fire Department responded to the chemical spill at 8:38 p.m., a spokesman said. But a hazardous-materials call prompted about a dozen Fire Department vehicles to arrive on the street around 10 p.m., and the police closed Seventh Avenue to pedestrians and traffic between 42nd and 48th Streets.
As a greeter at the Swatch store at Broadway and 45th Street, Naytira Baker, 19, is supposed to show off watches. But the bewildered Times Square crowd was more interested in the spectacle across the street, she said.
Told of the cause of the emergency response, Ms. Baker said, "I don't think it was that big of a deal for all those trucks to be here."
She added: "Or maybe that cleaning stuff was harmful. It was a show for the tourists, though."
By around 11:30, the area was clean, the Fire Department spokesman said, and people would be allowed to work there Monday morning.
On May 1, a similar scene unfolded with more unsettling results: the police discovered a failed car bomb in Times Square. A naturalized United States citizen from Pakistan, Faisal Shahzad, was arrested in the attempted bombing.
Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world
