X-URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/07/nyregion/07HUDS.html?pagewanted=print&position=bottom
March 7, 2003
Building Cited for Housing Fuel Tanks Catches Fire
By CHARLES V. BAGLI
An electrical fire broke out in the basement of an office tower
in TriBeCa yesterday, four months after building inspectors said
they had discovered illegal diesel fuel tanks installed on the
upper floors of the tower.
....
The building is one of a half-dozen Manhattan towers that were
the subjects of an investigation in November by fire and building
officials. The six, known as telecom hotels, house the computers,
cables and equipment of international telecommunications and
Internet tenants, all of which require backup generators run
by diesel fuel to keep the equipment cool. The stored fuel is
potentially lethal in an accident or a terrorist attack.
The New York Times is withholding the addresses of the buildings
at the request of city officials, who cited their importance to
international telecommunications and their potential as terrorist
targets.
According to the violations, inspectors found that five diesel
fuel tanks and seven large diesel generators had been installed
illegally on upper floors of the TriBeCa building. At the bottom
of each citation, the inspector wrote: "Conform fuel storage
tanks to code at once."
......
An electrical fire broke out in the basement of an office tower
in TriBeCa yesterday, four months after building inspectors said
they had discovered illegal diesel fuel tanks installed on the
upper floors of the tower.
basement. roof. what is it i am not getting here? osama bin
elevator? the ratcheting (rat sh<bleep>ing?) up of the american
press hysteria?
randy
X-URL: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/07/nyregion/07HUDS.html?pagewanted=print&position=bottom
<snip>
illegally on upper floors of the TriBeCa building. At the bottom
of each citation, the inspector wrote: "Conform fuel storage
tanks to code at once."
^^^^^^^
good thing that got done in a New York minute. 
- lel
Thus spake "Randy Bush" <randy@psg.com>
> An electrical fire broke out in the basement of an office tower
> in TriBeCa yesterday, four months after building inspectors said
> they had discovered illegal diesel fuel tanks installed on the
> upper floors of the tower.
basement. roof. what is it i am not getting here? osama bin
elevator? the ratcheting (rat sh<bleep>ing?) up of the american
press hysteria?
That's the irony -- if the fuel had been stored in the basement as required,
it might have become involved in the otherwise-unrelated electrical fire.
Four months isn't much time to comply with the code; I doubt the building
owner could have even gotten the permits to start work in that time, much
less finish construction, testing, and moving the fuel. Sure, it should
have been done right in the first place, but it's too late to argue that.
S
Stephen Sprunk "God does not play dice." --Albert Einstein
CCIE #3723 "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the
K5SSS dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking