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| Metrorail system to shut down for at least 29 hours beginning at midnight | Metrorail system to shut down for at least 29 hours beginning at midnight |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The entire Metro system will shut down for at least 24 hours starting at midnight tonight for safety checks of electric cables, General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said Tuesday. | |
| The decision for the unprecedented closure was made by the board of directors and Wiedefeld in a telephone conference call earlier this afternoon. | |
| They took the step after an electrical fire in a Metro tunnel early Monday, which caused huge delays on three subway lines, involved the same type of track-based power cables that burned during last year’s fatal Yellow Line smoke incident in another tunnel, the transit agency said. | They took the step after an electrical fire in a Metro tunnel early Monday, which caused huge delays on three subway lines, involved the same type of track-based power cables that burned during last year’s fatal Yellow Line smoke incident in another tunnel, the transit agency said. |
| The unprecedented, non-weather-related shutdown tonight is to avoid a repeat of the deadly incident. | |
| “While the risk to the public is very low, I cannot rule out a potential life safety issue here, and that is why we must take this action immediately,” Wiedefeld said. “When I say safety is our highest priority, I mean it. That sometimes means making tough, unpopular decisions, and this is one of those times. I fully recognize the hardship this will cause.” | |
| [What happened on Monday and the havoc it caused] | |
| Asked why the shutdown could not be delayed until the weekend Wiedefeld said, “From where I sit the safety of the public and my employees is paramount,” Wiedefeld. | |
| During the shutdown, about 600 cables will be checked in all tunnels in the system. | During the shutdown, about 600 cables will be checked in all tunnels in the system. |
| The system will be shut down at least for one full, 24-hour ridership cycle, from midnight Tuesday to midnight Wednesday. | |
| However, if potentially dangerous cables are found in the inspections, then the closure could be extended while repairs are made, Wiedefeld said. | |
| A full shutdown could have been avoided if the board had decided to conduct the safety checks over six days, a Metro official said. | A full shutdown could have been avoided if the board had decided to conduct the safety checks over six days, a Metro official said. |
| But the board, with support from Wiedefeld, decided to shut it down entirely because of concern about Metro’s liability if an incident occurred before the safety checks were complete, the official said. | But the board, with support from Wiedefeld, decided to shut it down entirely because of concern about Metro’s liability if an incident occurred before the safety checks were complete, the official said. |
| No details were immediately available about the location or seriousness of the fire at 4:30 a.m. Monday. But the incident was sufficiently similar to the Jan. 15, 2015, smoke calamity that it raised concern that a repeat was possible. In that case, an electrical malfunction on tracks near the station that day filled a tunnel with smoke, engulfing a stalled Yellow Line train in fumes. Scores of passengers were sickened and one died of respiratory failure. | No details were immediately available about the location or seriousness of the fire at 4:30 a.m. Monday. But the incident was sufficiently similar to the Jan. 15, 2015, smoke calamity that it raised concern that a repeat was possible. In that case, an electrical malfunction on tracks near the station that day filled a tunnel with smoke, engulfing a stalled Yellow Line train in fumes. Scores of passengers were sickened and one died of respiratory failure. |
| “The investigation into yesterday’s cable fire at McPherson Square is ongoing,” Wiedefeld said. “As a preliminary matter, the conditions appear disturbingly similar to those in the L’Enfant incident of a year ago, and our focus is squarely on mitigating any risk of a fire elsewhere on the system.” | |
| [Tracking Metro’s biggest meltdowns] | |
| An official in D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser’s office said she was alerted to the impending shutdown “in the 3 o’clock hour” and had little advance warning before news of the decision leaked publicly. “Obviously, we’re very disappointed,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because a formal statement from the mayor was forthcoming. | |
| D.C. Council member Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3) and chair of the council’s transportation committee said she received no official warning and learned of the news from the Internet. | |
| “The problem sounds mysterious and maybe this is a fairly dramatic step, but maybe it’s the kind of step that we need to get things right,” Cheh said. “I told the people in my office, ‘break out your bikes.’” | |
| So far, no local school systems have announced any closures related to the shutdown but some officials expressed concern over how their teachers and other employees might get to work. | |
| A spokesmand for the federal Office of Personnel Management said no decision has been made on whether government offices will be open. | |
| “OPM is actively coordinating with WMATA, D.C. and regional governments, and regional transportation entities to assess the current situation,” he said. “OPM will have guidance for agencies on the status of the Federal Government shortly.” | |
| Aaron C. Davis contributed to this report. | |
| Read more: | |
| D.C.’s Metro is the No. 1 transit system. Yes, you read that right. | |
| The biggest Metro meltdowns in the past four years |