A taxi cab parked in midtown Manhattan caught fire before exploding today, rattling the nerves of pedestrians and nearby office workers, but incredibly injuring no one. The engulfed cab was sitting on the corner of 53rd Street and Seventh Avenue when witnesses said smoke began rising from the car’s engine. After the driver exited the car, the engine caught on fire.
Seconds later, the flames spread throughout the vehicle, causing a violent explosion. Witnesses inside a nearby office building said they heard a loud “bang,” sending workers out of their seats and over to windows to see what happened.
Police and firefighters responded to the scene almost immediately and put the fire out in just a few minutes.
There were no apparent injuries. A street vendor selling framed pictures on the corner apparently lost a good portion of his work.
There’s no word yet on what sparked the fire.
Reports of the fire spread on Twitter just as fast as the flames did.
Twitter user @kornestik wrote: “OMG! just passed by a taxi cab on fire in Time Square!”
User @TimeForJohn wrote: “Taxi cab on 53rd and 7th is on fire and exploding.”
{WCBSTV/Matzav.com Newscenter}
