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A steam pipe exploded in central Manhattan in New York Wednesday, sending vast billows of steam sky-high, scattering debris and killing at least 1 while injuring 20 more. According to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the blast was down to a "failure of infrastructure."

One woman succumbed to a heart attack shortly after the explosion with two dozen more injured, some seriously, Bloomberg revealed at a news conference amid wailing sirens.
 
Blocks near the site were immediately evacuated and subway lines were diverted, after the explosion took place at 6 PM.

The public is being told to stay away from the area while tests are conducted to determine the presence of asbestos.

Bloomberg said a steam pipe dating back to 1924, measuring 24 inches in diameter, had ruptured, possibly due to cold rainwater.

The underground steam pipes, which heat and cool buildings in New York, have all been turned off, and a yawning crater took over the middle of the street.

Eye-witnesses described the spewing steam and debris as being like a "tornado rising from the ground."

As fire trucks and emergency crews worked around the site searching for "collateral damage", near 41st Street between 3rd and Lexington Avenue, adjacent windows could be seen to have been blown up by the force of the blast.

The last major steam explosion in the city happened in 1989, killing three people and sending mud and debris shooting several stories into the air.

(Xinhua News Agency July 19, 2007)