Upper West Side Track Fire Forces Trains To Evacuate: MTA

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — A fire broke out on the tracks of an Upper West Side subway station Wednesday afternoon, forcing passengers to evacuate trains and causing disruptions on a number of lines, MTA officials and witnesses said.

The blaze started at about 2:15 p.m. at the West 103rd Street and Broadway 1 train station, MTA officials said. The 1 train was suspended between West 96th Street and 137 Street-City College in both directions. A shopping cart left on the tracks caused the fire, MTA officials said.

Firefighters responding to the station did not locate a fire, but did encounter smoke, an FDNY spokesman said. Debris on the tracks caused "loud noises and a smoke condition," NYPD transit police said.

Passengers on the train took to social media to describe the chaotic scene. One passenger recounted hearing an explosion and said that there was "smoke everywhere" underground.

"It was rushed and crazy but no stampede so people got out safe (I think)... really hard to tell how close it was. All sorts of emergency vehicles there immediately," a passenger said on Twitter.

No injuries were reported as a result of the fire, an FDNY spokesman said.