Thursday, 4:30 PM
Steam spews from downtown manhole; streets closed because of asbestos worries
(Jodi Hilton for The Boston Globe)
By Martin Finucane, Globe Staff
A thick plume of steam spewed from a manhole today after a steam pipe under a downtown Boston street apparently ruptured. Several workers were decontaminated and streets in the area were closed because of concerns that asbestos had been released.
The steam was released from a 14-inch pipe owned by Trigen Boston Energy Corp., said Larry Plitch, general counsel for the Trigen companies. Plitch said some of the older steam pipes in the city are insulated with asbestos.
Plitch said tests have indicated that there was asbestos in a brown material that spewed, along with the steam, out of the manhole at Otis and Summer streets. He said the air in the area is still being tested.
He said it wasn't clear how the steam was released, but he promised that the company would "get to the bottom of the incident."
"We’re going to do a full-blown investigation, obviously, and make all of our findings available to the authorities," he said.
Scott Salman, Fire Department spokesman, said the incident was reported at about noon today. Four people were decontaminated. He said no serious injuries were reported.
George Charles, 25, of Chelsea, who works in a nearby office building, said he looked out his window and saw several manhole covers emitting steam. Charles said a worker pulled the cover off one and a plume of thick steam rushed out, rising as high as the buildings in the area, which are five to six stories.
John Tzamalas, owner of John's Clothing and Tailoring, which is near the intersection, said he is concerned that people won't be able to get to his business because of street closures in the area.
"My son went out for lunch and he can't come back," he said.
