By Leslie Albrecht and Jeff Mays
MANHATTAN — Straphangers face major headaches getting home during the evening rush after a water main break flooded subway stations on the Upper West Side and Harlem Monday morning, the MTA said.
Here's where things stand:
• The B and C lines are out of service "from end to end."
• There is no service on the A line between 168th Street and Columbus Circle.
• There is no service on the D line between 34th Street and 161st Street.
• Service will remain shut down through the evening rush hour and commuters should make other transportation arrangements, MTA spokesman Charles Seaton said.
"There will be no service through the evening rush hour," said Seaton. "Customers should use the numbered lines," including the 1, 2, 3 and 4 trains.
The B and C lines were taken out of service around 11:30 a.m., shortly after a major water main break at Central Park West and West 106th Street flooded streets. The torrent flooded subway stations from West 103rd Street to 125th Street, Seaton said.
The A, B, C, and D line station at 125th Street was flooded with three to four feet of water, and smoke was spotted in the station, Seaton said. Four pumps are pushing 6,000 gallons of water a minute out of the system to restore service as soon as possible, the MTA said in a statement.
On 125th and St. Nicholas Avenue near the A,B,C and D lines, subway riders looked for alternate routes on Monday afternoon.
"I told my husband I'd be home in 10 minutes," said Tessa Kagbala, 27, who came to Harlem from her apartment on 55th Street and 11th Avenue with her 10-day-old newborn for a stroll around the neighborhood. "I'm now trying to find a bus route home. Something that would take five minutes is now going to take at least 30 minutes," she said.
For more details and updates check the MTA's website.
