US

Blizzard Strands 400 Passengers on NYC Subway Overnight

NEW YORK (AP) — It took hours for Christopher Mullen to get off a plane from sunny Cancun and on to a half-empty subway car, his only way home. It would be another eight hours and more – a night spent huddled under a thin blanket on the frigid, grungy car – before he could get off the A train.

His feet soaked to the bone, with no food, water and hardly any heat, Mullen and 400 others lived through a New York nightmare on an elevated subway track, one of hundreds of stories of hardship caused by the crushing snowstorm that dropped more than 2 feet of snow on the Northeast.

By the time they got on the subway shortly before 1 a.m. Monday near Kennedy Airport, Mullen and his girlfriend were well into their ordeal battling the blizzard of December 2010.

Their flight landed two hours late. With snow whirling around the terminal, the airport train was down. There were no taxis. Wearing just a light spring jacket, Mullen stood in the snow and attempted to dig his car out from long-term parking. The only result: feet and legs that were soaking wet.

When the couple – their diving gear and luggage in tow – boarded the A train more than six hours after clearing Customs, it seemed that they were finally on their way. But the subway got only one stop before it was forced to a halt at an open-air station platform in a forlorn corner of Queens near the airport and Jamaica Bay. Later, NYC Transit spokesman Charles Seaton said the cause was snow drifts piled on the outside tracks and thick layers of ice on the electrified third rail.

At first, it seemed the delay might be brief. A loudspeaker announcement said that a train up ahead was stuck on the track due to the weather and they were being held back, Mullen said. But the minutes stretched into hours.

The train was in the station, but in the dark of night with bus service down and car services shuttered, there was nowhere for passengers to go. Train operators kept the doors closed to keep out the cold, but the gusting winds rattled the windows and the chill of the storm seeped into the car, overpowering the faint stream of warm air coming from the subway car’s heaters. It wasn’t quite cold enough for water in the car to freeze, but it felt nearly that bad.

The 400 on Mullen’s train were unlucky, but they were not alone. The blizzard left thousands of travelers stranded, closing all three of the metropolitan area’s airports and blocking most other means of transportation. Buses sputtered to a halt in snow drifts. Taxi drivers abandoned their cabs in the middle of New York’s snow-clogged streets. At least one other subway train was stranded on the tracks.

“I just huddled with my girlfriend. We just tried to stay close. I was not dressed appropriately for the weather at all,” Mullen said after the ordeal. “I didn’t think I needed a heavy coat. I regretted my choice” to pack light.

Whenever cold air would hit his wet feet, he started to shiver, he said. “I was just concerned for staying warm. I was freezing.”

Tensions in the car began to rise. No one was aggressive, but people were speaking forcefully to the conductor. Some demanded that city transit authorities bus them out. A mother with four children worried loudly that they had no water. Some worried about getting sick.

Men would walk onto the platforms connecting subway cars and urinate onto the tracks. Eventually, the train workers allowed passengers into the bathroom inside the train station. When it turned out that bathroom was heated, it caused a commotion.

“One woman came back and said, ‘Oh my God, the bathroom is SO warm,’” Mullen said. She was very excited. But the station had no heated space where the passengers could wait out the storm.

Twice, passengers called 911 and the Fire Department of New York responded. Passengers begged the emergency responders to take them away, but they were told they had to stay put, Mullen said.

At some point, it became morning. But the windows were too iced over to see the sun rise.

Finally, at around 9 a.m., the train began to move again.

Asked about the stranded passengers, Metropolitan Transportation Authority Chairman Jay Walder said, “We will of course take a look at that situation after the storm. I know it wasn’t comfortable.”

For Mullen, a 42-year-old art director for local cable news channel NY1, and his girlfriend, Melanie A. M. Hinds, it was another 3 1/2 hours before they arrived at his apartment. With no trains running to his Park Slope, Brooklyn, stop, they took a different subway, then made a fruitless attempt to find a car service to take them home.

Finally, a generous couple drove them as close as they could get. It took them 20 minutes to drag their luggage and gear three blocks, through snow drifts that, at times, reached 3 feet high.

Once he crossed the threshold, the first thing Mullen did was change into something dry.

From the plane to his front door, their 14-mile odyssey had taken them 18 hours.

Comments (55)

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  • bcullum1952
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 5:00pm

    If they did not like the 18 hour 14 mile trip, perhaps they might consider relocating to a more hospitable climate. Or maybe they should have been prepared for weather at their destination.
    Glacier National Park had 3 teenage hikers spend the night in a blizzard on the side of a mountain with no tent, but they complained less than these folks. Guess we are becoming a nation of wusses (or at least New Yorkers are)

    Report Post »  
  • TheFormerlyInvisibleMan
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 3:44pm

    And what the hell are you doing spending money in Mexico? Don’t you know, they are the ENEMY?

    Report Post » TheFormerlyInvisibleMan  
  • TheFormerlyInvisibleMan
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 3:43pm

    Put on your wetsuit, TARDO. I mean, it’ll keep you warmer than your fancy-pants.

    Some people are Fing helpless.

    There is no way I would stay in a damn subway car for 18 hours. STRIKE OUT, head for home. Head for a church (at least it’ll be heated, and open). You’re in the city that never sleeps for the love of mercy.

    Report Post » TheFormerlyInvisibleMan  
  • bookofwisdom
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 1:43pm

    Unless it‘s an emergency it’s best to stay home when the weather is out of control all over the country. May God Bless.

    Report Post » bookofwisdom  
  • katiefrankie
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 1:14pm

    I think the key element here (besides horror for the hapless passengers) is that there is a big, fat, scary chance that NO ONE is going to come to your rescue except YOU. A few years ago, on my own in a dodgy part of Long Island, my friend and I discovered that we were being followed at precisely the moment I dropped our cell phone under my seat in the car. While I scrabbled for it in vain, she tried to guess who might be following us in the dark, and when it became obvious that this was no friendly joke, we panicked. Neither of us could remember the location of the police station we passed EVERY DAY, and the phone was as good as tossed out the window, for all I could reach it. We managed to get to a well-lit laundromat, but were blocked in by the person following us nonetheless. Luckily, the follower realized we were NOT who she thought we were and that she had made a horrible mistake. Still, I was so ashamed that in an emergency, I had panicked instead of knowing what to do to save us. I have tried since to be much more aware of my surroundings and of possible dangers. We have to be self-sufficient because no one will have our best interest at heart quite like WE will.

    Report Post » katiefrankie  
  • GhostOfJefferson
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:55am

    Anybody who has…smelled…NYC subways can feel nothing but abject pity for these people.

    Imagine a night spent in the wafting aroma of puke and urine, accented on occasion by the drifting odor of human feces and sweat.

    Ugh.

    Report Post » GhostOfJefferson  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:04pm

      As an aside, things like this always makes me wonder why people would voluntarily choose to live in a big city. I can drive to one if I want to go to a Jazz Club or a play at the theater, or go to the museum. The symphony (which I enjoy) is not worth living in the absolute squalor and cramped, nasty conditions of a big city. Never liked having to live in one when I had to as a child, or in the military (on occasion only). Just don’t get the attraction.

      Report Post » GhostOfJefferson  
    • katiefrankie
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:23pm

      You said it. I was there as a missionary and was assigned to Brooklyn, Queens, and Long Island. I have NEVER missed that area of the world since. I can’t understand the people who pine for a NY flat – I couldn’t get out of there fast enough, and never want to live in a city again. I’ll DRIVE out of my way for the arts, thanks!

      Report Post » katiefrankie  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:33pm

      It is a wonder isn’t it?

      Even “nice” big cities give me a case of the creeping heebie jeebies after about a week. I simply adore London, England but if I’m there longer than about 8 days I start getting really anxious and irritable. Paris, same thing. Edinburgh, well that takes a bit longer but that’s because of the various pubs that I crawl through, but after a while even that doesn’t suffice. And American cities, by and large, leave me flat cold.

      Guess I’m not cut out for the “collective” hive mindset much. It has to be some innate personality trait. Some people love cities. I just don’t get it.

      Report Post » GhostOfJefferson  
    • katiefrankie
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 1:01pm

      I enjoyed Rome a LOT while I was there (one week), but once I got to Tuscany and the winding cobblestone streets of medieval Siena, nestled in verdant, rolling hills striped with grapes, I knew that was where I was meant to be instead. Cities are just not NATURAL.

      Report Post » katiefrankie  
  • katiefrankie
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:42am

    Ugh. I’ve been stuck in a NYC subway on an elevated platform for an hour in boiling hot weather and that was unpleasant – I can only imagine how awful that must have been for those poor people. They didn’t even have the luck to get stuck in the DC subway, which is actually clean and pleasant.

    Report Post » katiefrankie  
  • mdlwoods
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:41am

    90% are sheep, unable to help themselves. 10% will be leaders, who will lead the sheep to safety. Obviously, those who complained the loudest and began to talk rudly to the conductors are sheep, looking for, no, demanding that someone do something! Baaaaaa. Those will not survive if things get really bad without strong leadership to help them survive.

    Report Post » mdlwoods  
  • jettson
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:23am

    Ha Ha I told you to stay home

    Report Post » jettson  
  • IVillageIdiot
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:10am

    What do you supposed GVT run health care will be like…?

    Probably,…. a LOT like this…!

    (BTW, Did you see the video of the NYC snow plow being pulled out,… LOL)
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kt_r-jO3lKE

    Report Post » IVillageIdiot  
  • PatriotDaze
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:57am

    Good practice for Coburn’s coming Apocalyptic Pain. I sure hope these 400 had packed their SURVIVAL SEED BACKPACKS!!

    Report Post » PatriotDaze  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:00pm

      If one lives in a place where natural disasters can and do occur, it is best practice to always have a backup of food and water. Blizzards have kept us in the Midwest incommunicado for weeks at a time, and tornadoes are rampant in the summer and autumn. If people are canning and buying seeds, and nothing “happens”, well then they have an ample supply of fresh tasty food and a way to start a nice summer garden every year.

      As a former Boy Scout and military man myself, having seen places in the world that were nice one moment and hell holes the next, I can say with foremost authority that only a fool would belittle being prepared for an emergency situation. This is an apolitical statement, btw. If you’re living day to day with a JIT inventory of “stuff”, you’re living on the edge and undeserving of pity if something bad, natural or otherwise, does happen.

      Report Post » GhostOfJefferson  
    • snowleopard3200 {cat folk art}
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:07pm

      @Ghost

      Here in AZ, we usually do not need to deal with blizzards like hit the NY area, however I have just about completed a stockpile of eight weeks of non perishable food, cans, water and the like for the one nightmare in our summers; having a massive power failure due to a central transformer go down (one did a couple of years ago) and being without most or all power for several weeks during the hottest parts of the summer.

      Also if anything else were to happen, it gives me a few extra options as well.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:13pm

      @snowleopard3200

      Good thinking. I can think of really no place in these united States not prone to some sort of semi-regular natural danger. Ohio (where I live) is almost an Elysium in many ways and you can still kick the bucket here if you‘re not careful and think that you don’t have to consider things that might crop up.

      99 out of 100 times, when I see somebody mocking being prepared for emergencies, it’s some city type who thinks that beef comes on plastic wrapped Styrofoam trays that are picked directly from Beef Trees and who has the raw survivability odds of a pat of butter in a fired up ceramics kiln.

      I guess there’s a reason why natural disasters and wars have historically kept human populations in check (until very recently).

      Report Post » GhostOfJefferson  
  • REETZBEE
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:37am

    It‘s Obama’s fault for not rescuing them just like it was Bush’s fault for the hurricane. Where was Mayor “muslim sypathizer” Bloomberg? If you know there‘s a blizzard out and you have to travel by train why wouldn’t you bundle up and throw a couple of granola bars in your pocket.

    Report Post » REETZBEE  
    • the_ancient
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:43am

      I would assume based on them coming from the airport and having “diving gear” they were some place warm and packed for the weather at their DESTINATION and did not plan for a blizzard on their return trip home… Not that it is an excuse, but and explanation as to why they were dressed like they were

      Report Post » the_ancient  
  • SavvyCowboy
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:36am

    This is hilarious!!! There are tens of millions if not hundreds of millions of morons in the US that feel because they are “highly educated” are much more intelligent than a hick like me. I’ll bet my entire ranch that I survive the impending economic collapse, possible second civil war in the US and live a long time while these idiots will die by the tens of thousands every day. I have plenty of food, guns, ammo and other stockpiles along with over 22 years in the U.S. Army. I know what I’m doing. I’ll survive for decades while our country is purged of the communist ilk that infiltrated academia, the government and every other aspect of our American way of life.

    Good riddance liberal commies and do NOT come looking to me for help. You will become dog and/or hog food. :)

    Report Post » SavvyCowboy  
  • Speak without Fear
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:36am

    WOW…that would have been the radical MUSLIMS dream…….senerio!!!!!

    Report Post »  
  • DashRipRock
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:35am

    Hello, my name is Al Gore.

    Today I would like to talk to you about a global
    problem that we are all facing together. A problem
    that could lead to global destruction of course
    I am speeking of Man-Bear-Pig…..”

    “excelcierrrrrrrrr….”

    Report Post »  
  • AzDebi
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:34am

    Was that a “BABY CARRIAGE” I saw in that clip?

    Report Post » AzDebi  
  • the_ancient
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:29am

    this is what happens when people depend solely on government services for their survival. These people depended on
    1> The Airport Authority (government)
    2> MTA- Subway (government)
    3> MTA – buses (government
    4> Fire Dept. Government

    ALL failed to properly respond to the conditions they indirectly caused, they may not have caused the snowfall, but the government created the dependency on their services that failed when something out of the ordinary occurred.

    Report Post » the_ancient  
    • PatriotDaze
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:02am

      Ancient….Mullen was going to CANCUN. Reliance upon something other than ones horse is pretty much a prerequisite if you live in the modern age…..and somewhere other than CANCUN.
      Jeesh!!

      Report Post » PatriotDaze  
    • the_ancient
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:10am

      I used to travel 3 to 3.5 weeks out of the month for business, I always packed atleast 1 set of Warm Winter Cloths with me in my travels during the winter months because I never knew what the weather would be like on my return trip back to the Cold Tundra that is the Upper Midwest.

      I also have emergency Supplies in my 4×4 Truck that has snow chains that allows me to get out of MOST snowy situations, or as a last measure allow me to wait until I can get assistance form friends or family, or eventually when they feel like getting around to it a snow plow. Where I live if you do not do it yourself, the government might get to you 4 weeks after the snow has melted….

      Report Post » the_ancient  
    • walkwithme1966
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:08pm

      So what are you saying – that the government let everyone down? That these people should have been more prepared? I am just glad I live in Texas – we don’t get snow except once every 10 years – if then!!
      http://maboulette.wordpress.com
      Oh, and its not global warming – its been changed to global climate change!!

      Report Post » walkwithme1966  
    • GhostOfJefferson
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:21pm

      @1966

      You said:

      “Oh, and its not global warming – its been changed to global climate change!!”

      LOL! That’s a great phrase. Who can argue with it? I mean, yeah, the global “climate” (whatever that means) does change, daily, by the minute even. It’s impossible to argue otherwise really. The phrase you say it’s been changed to is perfectly meaningless as far as politics go, thankfully. I had no idea that this was the new official wording, thanks for the heads up. :)

      Report Post » GhostOfJefferson  
    • the_ancient
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:27pm

      @WALKWITHME1966

      Beware when someone says “I am with the government and I am hear to help you”

      As for Texas, Snow is not that bad, IF you prepare for it and know what do in it. I am a cold weather person, I have been to Texas many many times, and I could never live with the heat down there….

      Report Post » the_ancient  
  • stmike
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:25am

    I have no sympathy for newyorkers. Sorry. I just hope there are a few less that believe in global warming. OH and if the climate stops changing, THEN you have a problem!

    Report Post »  
    • seayalater73
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:31am

      Right on…

      Report Post »  
    • Gonzo
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:41am

      You would think their plane crashed in the Andes and they had to eat their dead, MAN UP! It was one night.

      Report Post » Gonzo  
    • Momento Mori
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:00pm

      Cold winter’s in certain parts of the world hardly disproves “climate” change. Nice try though.

      Report Post » Momento Mori  
    • copatriots
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:38pm

      Wow……momento mori…….is it really so difficult for you liberals to believe you are wrong about anything? You seem like such intelligent people but pride won’t allow you to admit you were fooled and deceived by your beloved ruling class.

      Report Post »  
  • TRONINTHEMORNING
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:23am

    My parents; who are from Colorado, spent Christmas with my brother who lives in Jersey. My Dad ended up helping folks all day yesterday who couldn’t help themselves in the snow. Oh, and no plowing was apparent at all! Send those workers out to Colorado; we‘ll learn ’em!

    Report Post »  
  • seayalater73
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:22am

    This what happens when you depend on the government for anything. Me, I routinely cover more miles in less time. Only a feeb would let this happen to some one he loves. Never travel without contingency gear, even if it makes you look like a grunt.

    Report Post »  
  • tobywil2
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:17am

    Or does anyone know how much extra carbon dioxide we have to generate to avoid this kind of trouble in the future. http://commonsense21c.com/

    Report Post » tobywil2  
  • Gonzo
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:17am

    Boohoo :-(

    Report Post » Gonzo  
  • N37BU6
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:11am

    FYI, Anonymous’ lair is down due to DDoS attacks.

    Just in case you want to make the headline “Hacker Group Anonymous attacked by hacker group Anonymous”.

    Or you could just continue to give the illusion that Anonymous is an organized anti-American group with a singular goal and a spokesperson…

    Report Post » N37BU6  
  • DashRipRock
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:11am

    So thats where they held the Kwanmas Party?

    I was wondering.

    Report Post »  
    • cubber
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:14am

      We just don’t see this kind of coverage when it hits the Midwest. Come on. As Uncle Ed from PA would say, you are all woosies. BE PREPARED.

      Report Post » cubber  
    • snowleopard3200 {cat folk art}
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:17am

      Another example of the “Global Warming” the dingbats in DC keep mentioning they have to save our great planet from. It also shows that when on travel, take a bit of time to figure out what the future weather will most likely be for the area, and be prepared.

      Sudden changes in weather happen, yet these storms were mentioned heading that way on AZ radio for the last few days.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
    • ishka4me
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:47am

      global warming alarmists are as nutty as bithers./the climate has always changed and always will.

      Report Post »  
    • Dale
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 11:11am

      I love unusually cold weather; I tell people, “Thank goodness for global warming, otherwise it might REALLY get cold”.

      Report Post » Dale  
    • snowleopard3200 {cat folk art}
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:03pm

      @Dale

      Have to remember that one. Thanks.

      Report Post » Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}  
  • TruthTalker
    Posted on December 28, 2010 at 10:10am

    Terrible situation.

    Report Post »  
    • Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 12:20pm

      At least they had the Bums to keep them entertained. I heard the muggers ran out of victoms in the first hour.

      Report Post » Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra  
    • Locutus
      Posted on December 28, 2010 at 5:17pm

      its the jet stream/gulf stream situation thats doing this.

      Report Post » Locutus  
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