Traffic & Transit

Union Square Track Fire Fills Station With Smoke

Police found an electrical issue at the station after getting reports of the sound of an explosion, the NYPD said.

Smoke filled the Union Square subway station amid a track fire there Monday morning.
Smoke filled the Union Square subway station amid a track fire there Monday morning. (Emilio Paschetto/Used with permission)

EAST VILLAGE, NY — A track fire filled the Union Square subway station with smoke and snarled service on eight subway lines Monday morning, according to officials and witnesses. Straphangers shared photos of the smoky station as firefighters responded to the fire, which the FDNY said was reported just before 6:45 a.m.

Police discovered an electrical issue at the transit hub after getting reports of the sound of an explosion, the NYPD said on Twitter. The small third-rail fire had been put out by 7:25 a.m., according to the NYPD.

New York City Transit warned of "extensive delays" Monday morning after the ordeal briefly halted 4, 5 and 6 trains and forced N, Q, R, W and L trains to skip Union Square.

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Normal service on the numbered lines was resuming just before 7:40 a.m. while the lettered lines were stopping at Union Square again just after 7:15 a.m., the transit agency said.

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