# I am so glad I take the train home... (Wall Collapses by Henry Hudson)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [May 12, 2005, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601 "2005-05-12T21:00:55Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 12\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tellmei_mnotcrazy/32/3419_2.png) [@TellMeI\_mNotCrazy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TellMeI_mNotCrazy)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2005, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/1 "2005-05-12T21:00:55Z")

</div>

A retaining wall along the Henry Hudson Highway collapsed, wiping out the northbound lane of traffic. A woman who apparently works for the complex that, by her thoughts, owns the wall says they were doing contruction on the wall for the past 6 months for known “issues”. Something tells me her boss was frantically trying to call her on the other line to get her to shut up…

So far there’s no known injuries, nor any missing people. If that remains true after all is said and done, it will be truly amazing.

Link to story here:

[http://www.wnbc.com/traffic/4482870/detail.html](http://www.wnbc.com/traffic/4482870/detail.html) and there is a link to chopper footage there.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2005, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/2 "2005-05-12T21:02:49Z")

</div>

I’m glad I will be taking the train home as well, since this is right near where I live.

Yikes.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\
**Post date:** [May 12, 2005, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/3 "2005-05-12T23:15:47Z")

</div>

I saw this on the news. What a mess. It sounds like no one was hurt, but there’s a lot of frustrated commuters tonight.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/4 "2005-05-13T00:42:20Z")

</div>

i just saw this on the news. wow! what a mess!

to further complicate things one of the bridges amtrak uses caught fire.

not a good day to be a nyc commuter.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/5 "2005-05-13T05:01:11Z")

</div>

Gosh. I think I’ll move to, like, [LA.](http://abcnews.go.com/US/Weather/popup?id=409222)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/6 "2005-05-13T11:51:58Z")

</div>

The wall owners are swearing up and down that the thing’s been inspected over and over again, with the engineers saying it would last “another 100 years”. They had recent damage, though, and an engineer was there that very day taking pictures in preparation to do repairs. Thankfully nobody was hurt. Who knows how else this could have played out, resulting in multiple deaths.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![sunfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sunfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunfish)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/7 "2005-05-13T12:29:33Z")

</div>

I heard on the news this morning that firefighters had already responded to a smaller collapse, so the area was clear of people when the big collapse happened. Very lucky indeed.

Of course, it took me nearly 2 hours to get home, instead of the usual 20-minute ride. Guess who’s working from home today?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/8 "2005-05-13T13:30:52Z")

</div>

Henry Hudson Highway collapses . . . Amtrak bridge catches fire . . . Who needs terrorists?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/9 "2005-05-13T18:58:21Z")

</div>

Any of our Dopers hurt or involved? _worried_

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/10 "2005-05-13T19:07:37Z")

</div>

> [@Kythereia](#):
>
> Any of our Dopers hurt or involved? _worried_

Well, I’m not involved in a “jumped from a buirning bridge” or “covered by mountains of dirt” way . . . But I _am_ involved in a “do I want to fight my way through the confused crowds of refugees in the PATH trains, or through Port Authority tonight?” way.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/11 "2005-05-13T19:07:38Z")

</div>

> [@sunfish](#):
>
> I heard on the news this morning that firefighters had already responded to a smaller collapse, so the area was clear of people when the big collapse happened. Very lucky indeed.  
> \<snip\>

That’s a relief at least. I was picturing the workers unearthing crushed vehicles. Does it look like the owners of the wall will actually be liable for this in court?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![sunfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sunfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunfish)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2005, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-am-so-glad-i-take-the-train-home-wall-collapses-by-henry-hudson/303601/12 "2005-05-13T19:19:44Z")

</div>

Well, it was their responsibility to maintain it, and there were plans in the works for repairs. [article](http://ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=50845) I would assume that insurance would cover at least some of the property damage, and maybe any other civil claims that arose from this.
