# Well, there's your problem right there--you filled the equipment room with concrete! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 23, 2014, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546 "2014-01-23T18:46:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/1 "2014-01-23T18:46:45Z")
While I am (in this case, thankfully) not a Londoner, I cannot help but love this story: Victoria Line closed due to [concrete flood](http://usvsth3m.com/post/74285062011/you-wont-believe-why-the-victoria-line-is-currently). Blimey! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/2 "2014-01-23T18:50:45Z")
The “article” (there’s nothing much there) doesn’t explain _WHY_ they would have done this. I can’t imagine them wanting to pour some other liquid into the control room, and pouring in cement by mistake, so How Did This Happen? At least it’s not as bad as the Great Boston Molasses Flood which took some lives. But at least we know that in that case, it was an accident. > **[Great Molasses Flood](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_Molasses_Disaster)** > > The Great Molasses Flood, also known as the Boston Molasses Disaster,\[a\] was a disaster that occurred on January 15, 1919, in the North End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. > A large storage tank filled with 2.3 million U.S. gallons (8,700 cubic meters) of molasses, weighing approximately\[b\] 13,000 short tons (12,000 metric tons), burst, and the resultant wave of molasses rushed through the streets at an estimated 35 miles per hour (56 kilometers per hour), killing 21 people and injuring ... ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/3 "2014-01-23T18:58:51Z")
Details seem to be sketchy–I linked to that particular article because that’s the website that broke the story, plus it’s got the pictures. As far as I can tell from the various more substantive articles I’ve looked at, it seems to have been an accident. > [@BBC](#): > > Transport for London said the mixture of concrete and water was being used to “fill voids” while upgrade work was being carried out. > **[Victoria Tube line part shut hit by wet concrete flood](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-25862543)** > > Part of the Victoria Tube line is suspended in London after concrete floods a control room. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/4 "2014-01-23T20:09:55Z")
Maybe someone was going along like “Void, void, void, voi…shit, that one was a door!” ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/5 "2014-01-23T20:27:57Z")
“Londoners can now be assured that the Victoria Line has a solid signalling system in place” “Cement construction worker seen running away from Victoria station. Police worried he will become a hardened criminal” ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/6 "2014-01-23T20:36:20Z")
I love those gigantic railroad relays. Clickety-clack-clack. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/7 "2014-01-23T20:40:44Z")
“Transport for London say the line will stay closed tonight, although nothing is set in stone” ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/8 "2014-01-23T20:43:44Z")
Wow, **Cinnamon** , between this and the [cannibal rats](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=713896), you’re on a headline roll today! ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/9 "2014-01-23T20:45:11Z")
It’s been a good day for snark in the UK 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/10 "2014-01-23T21:12:11Z")
One more, then I’ll stop I swear - the [flowchart](https://twitter.com/TimeOutLondon/status/426405643398828033/photo/1)for this situation ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/11 "2014-01-23T21:37:20Z")
Slightly more on the voids. From here: [London's Victoria line suspended after control room is flooded with cement | London Underground | The Guardian](http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jan/23/londons-victoria-line-suspended-after-control-room-is-flooded-with-cement) > [@](#): > > Tube workers clearing up at the scene said the contractors, VINCI BAM Nuttall, appeared to have poured concrete into a void in an escalator machine room that burst through into the signal equipment room with a flood up to a foot (30cm) deep. It could have been a void in an old concrete floor that broke through and flooded the room below (or to the side, if cracks in the void snaked under a wall). It also could have been a void in a wall that either broke through or that didn’t have strong enough forms on one side. Or something else, if the workers guessed wrong or were misquoted. Worst case for VB Nuttall would be, “I couldn’t see where it went, but I figured it had to have a bottom somewhere.” None of the pictures show how big the flooded room was. If it was the size of a closet that might be less than a cubic yard of concrete. Not good for the equipment, but not the world’s biggest concrete oops. Can anyone guess the size of the room from the equipment described? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/12 "2014-01-23T21:47:23Z")
A couple of those pictures look like there is a drain in the floor. If it is the floor and not just a hole in a shelf, it’s hard to get perspective from them. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/13 "2014-01-23T22:40:21Z")
When I was at the U. of Evansville, a urinal on our floor stuck “on”, and the floor drain was plugged up. I went down to the restroom below us, and I took the drain plug out of the trap under our floor. It didn’t really solve the problem, but it moved it. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2014, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/14 "2014-01-23T22:56:12Z")
How long before it occurs to someone to set up duplicate equipment and patch the wiring into it, even if it means the new equipment takes up all available space in the room? Maybe find a place upstream for the replacement equipment. Get the damned trains running, and figure out what’s next when the trains AREN’T supposed to be running. TWITS! ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/15 "2014-01-24T00:32:59Z")
You can’t just get duplicate interlocking equipment off the shelf. These things are individually designed for the specific track configuration at each place. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/16 "2014-01-24T08:05:01Z")
Were the design docs also buried? SF had a 5 lane, curved section of the Bay Bridge fail in 1989 - and it wasn’t a simple curve. Getting the old section (this was the upper of a double-deck) out, a new section fabricated and lowered into place (a bridge- no land under) took about a month. That replacement rack should be well under way, with all components on hand - it looks to be a series of relays - anything about the relays to make them custom and can’t-possibly-be-temporarily-replaced by off the shelf relays? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/17 "2014-01-24T08:35:37Z")
It’s not the relays that are special, but the wiring. Railroad interlockings are basically relay computers - lots of complicated logic gates ensuring that you can’t get an incorrect signal indication. So some dude is going to have to put together a bunch of relays and re-implement the same logic functions to make this particular section of track and signals work correctly. We had a similar situation in New York when a fire destroyed a good portion of a relay room at Chambers Street on the 8th Ave subway line. They were able to jury-rig some temporary equipment to get some trains running in the short term, but it took a couple months to get everything back to normal. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 9:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/18 "2014-01-24T09:38:32Z")
They got it fixed overnight: > **[Victoria Tube line reopens after wet concrete flood](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-25873252)** > > A section of the Victoria Line through central London which was shut after wet concrete flooded into a control room reopens. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 11:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/19 "2014-01-24T11:21:53Z")
Apparently they used sugar (just a spoonful?) to fix it: [Victoria line cement ‘flooding’ fixed: Workers used sugar to stop spilled concrete from setting | The Independent | The Independent](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/victoria-line-cement-flooding-fixed-workers-used-sugar-to-stop-spilled-concrete-from-setting-9082206.html) ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2014, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546/20 "2014-01-24T12:27:06Z")
Have trains rolled on (…in the most delightful way!) yet? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/well-theres-your-problem-right-there-you-filled-the-equipment-room-with-concrete/679546.md?page=2)