New York City: Sky turns bright blue for a while after explosion at power plant
The New York Police Department said that the colour, caused by a brief electrical fire, was not the result of any ‘extraterrestrial activity’.
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An explosion at a power plant temporarily caused the sky in New York City to turn bright blue on Thursday night, Reuters reported. The power plant belongs to the Con Edison power company and is located in Queens borough.
The power company tweeted that it was working with the city fire department “to respond [to] a substation fire in Astoria”. The company said a “brief electrical fire” had broken out at its substation on 20th Avenue and 32nd Street in Astoria, which “caused a transmission dip in the area”.
The company said the situation was stable after a while and it was investigating the cause of the incident. According to the New York Police Department’s 114th Precinct, the transformer explosion was determined to be “a non-suspicious equipment malfunction”. No injuries were reported, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Twitter.
The New York Police Department confirmed that the blue skyline was not the result of “extraterrestrial activity”.
There was a brief electrical fire at our substation on 20th Avenue & 32nd Street in Astoria this evening, which caused a transmission dip in the area. All power lines serving the area are in service and the system is stable. Photo: Michael Friedl, New York Times pic.twitter.com/vq2Ao46rhk
— Con Edison (@ConEdison) December 28, 2018
Confirming incident in #Astoria was result of transformer explosion. No injuries, no fire, no evidence of extraterrestrial activity. Please continue to follow @FDNY and @Conedison
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) December 28, 2018
The explosions lit up the sky in shades of blue that were visible from as far as Manhattan and New Jersey, CNN reported. The tremors from the blasts shook buildings and rattled windows, forcing people out into the streets. Residents also reported temporary power outages.
The explosions also led to a temporary closure of the LaGuardia Airport in Queens and no flights were allowed to take off for an hour on Thursday night. While the Metropolitan Transportation Authority did not witness power outages, a few trains faced delays.
Several Twitter users posted images and videos of a turquoise sky above Queens.
Uhm why is the entire sky over Queens glowing? pic.twitter.com/mUiKINC8zq
— Justin Kerr Sheckler (@jayKayEss) December 28, 2018
This spectacular undulating turquoise sky over NYC tonight, resulting from a Con Ed transformer explosion, has now been perfectly dubbed THE ASTORIA BOREALIS by @benpassikoff. No injuries reported, delays at LAG, some brief power outages, no Zuuls pic.twitter.com/yLv82oGQTg
— Keith Olbermann (@KeithOlbermann) December 28, 2018
The skies over New York City turned bright blue Thursday night after a transformer explosion in Queens.
— ABC News (@ABC) December 28, 2018
"The lights you have seen throughout the city appear to have been from a transformer explosion at a Con Ed facility in Queens," NYPD posted on Twitter. https://t.co/pOzlfjuFS1 pic.twitter.com/CWCSJEo6Li
so anyone catch those creepy lights over Queens just now 👀👽pic.twitter.com/TPh8BL5QbZ
— Complex (@Complex) December 28, 2018
Several residents witnessed an apparent electrical fire in Queens that the @NYPDnews traced back to a @ConEdison power plant, where a transformer exploded. https://t.co/w4RbQCckAq
— Twitter Moments (@TwitterMoments) December 28, 2018
Power plant explosion in Queens in the last hour has lit the New York City skyline in blue. First mass reaction on social media was a UFO landing. Sidebar: NYC airports have halted traffic. pic.twitter.com/RHoepc2fdi
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) December 28, 2018