No injuries, no asbestos in Midtown East steam pipe leak, officials say

The cause of an early morning steam pipe leak in Midtown East is still under investigation, but officials said there were no injuries and initial air quality testing does not show elevated levels of asbestos.

At an evening press conference, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Emergency Management Commissioner Zach Iscol called the incident a “rupture” and advised residents to stay indoors and wear N95 masks.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we recommend New Yorkers living in the area to wear masks and stay indoors while we complete the cleaning,” Adams said.

“Every test that we have run so far the preliminary results have been that it has been negative for asbestos in the air,” Iscol said.

Many of the city’s older steam pipes are covered with asbestos insulation. A 2018 steam pipe explosion spewed asbestos into the air.

Iscol said the affected area extends from 2nd Avenue to nearly Park Avenue and 51st Street to 53rd Street. Police were escorting residents and workers into the area, Iscol said.

“It's a big area that we need to start cleaning up,” Iscol said. “We expect these operations to take at least a few days, possibly more, just because it is a big area.”

Officials differed over what to call the leak. Adams used the word “rupture”; however, Hugh Grant, Con Ed’s vice president of steam operations, said “steam release” and not a rupture.

“We had a call in regards to a vapor condition on the location,” Grant said, also at the evening press conference. “That condition worsened and ended up with a release of steam. It's not a rupture, it's a release of steam on one of the auxiliary pipes.”

Officials with Con Ed and City Hall did not immediately clarify the significance of the distinction.