A Crazy Cold Story

The Equitable Building, from the Museum of the City of New York's blog.

This ridiculously chilly cold snap (NY1 says it's a balmy 12 degrees outside...again!) and report of firefighter issues in Chicago reminded me of one of the many freaky weather-related events in New York City: The Equitable Building Fire.

The 1870 building at 120 Broadway caught fire on January 9, 1912, in the middle of a below-freezing, windy night. The multi-alarm blaze became impossible to fight when the water (on the building and in the firefighting apparatuses) froze--rather spectacularly. Read all about this unusual event on the Museum of the City of New York's blog.