5 BOYS RESCUED FROM STATEN ISLAND SEWER AFTER CRAWLING IN, GETTING LOST

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Goldhedge

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5 BOYS RESCUED FROM STATEN ISLAND SEWER AFTER CRAWLING IN, GETTING LOST​

 
Did they eat any pizza with mutant ninja turtles?
 
I'm amazed they had cell service, considering they were underground in a storm sewer.


Edited to add: i knew a guy once who told me that when he wad a kid, that he and his friends would go explore the storm sewers. Said they could get all over town using them, and had been in 'em enough to know their way around without getting lost, or stuck. Seems like it could be fun, but also kinda creepy. Kinda like spelunking.

All I gotta say is, if ya go in one, you'd do well to check the weather forecast to make sure there is no chance of rain while you'll be in there.
 
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I'm amazed they had cell service, considering they were underground in a storm sewer.
Hey, those folks in 9/11 planes were calling home from up in the sky 2 years before the cell technology existed!

"Let's ROLL!"
 
Wouldn't there be the occasional ladder leading up to a manhole cover?
 
Wouldn't there be the occasional ladder leading up to a manhole cover?
Yep, sure would be. Problem is though, those things weigh a lot, and could be near impossible for someone to lift off from the inside while also simultaneously trying to hold onto the ladder.

Also, opening for storm sewers can sometimes be covered with grates in order to prevent tree limbs and other debris from entering and clogging them up.

It's entirely possible that they went in and just couldn't find their way back out, and every opening they encountered couldn't be exited through.

That's all speculation though.

To know for sure what happened, we'd need better info than what was in that recording.

Personally, if I were going to explore one of those things, I'd take along two good flashlights, and a can of spray paint to occasionally mark the way I'd come from, so I could find my way back out without having to call for help


Edited to add: it can also be very dangerous to lift a manhole cover from the inside, as when you'd lift one side and push it up at an angle to get it out of the way, it could easily flip over back onto the hole, and cause ya to lose a finger(s), or smash you in the head. As I posted above, those things are heavy. I just checked, and it says they range from 90 to as much as 150 lbs. Anyone would be hard pressed to lift one off from the inside.
 
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Yep, sure would be. Problem is though, those things weigh a lot, and could be near impossible for someone to lift off from the inside while also simultaneously trying to hold onto the ladder.

Also, opening for storm sewers can sometimes be covered with grates in order to prevent tree limbs and other debris from entering and clogging them up.

It's entirely possible that they went in and just couldn't find their way back out, and every opening they encountered couldn't be exited through.

That's all speculation though.

To know for sure what happened, we'd need better info than what was in that recording.

Personally, if I were going to explore one of those things, I'd take along two good flashlights, and a can of spray paint to occasionally mark the way I'd come from, so I could find my way back out without having to call for help


Edited to add: it can also be very dangerous to lift a manhole cover from the inside, as when you'd lift one side and push it up at an angle to get it out of the way, it could easily flip over back onto the hole, and cause ya to lose a finger(s), or smash you in the head. As I posted above, those things are heavy. I just checked, and it says they range from 90 to as much as 150 lbs. Anyone would be hard pressed to lift one off from the inside.


Just thinking out loud here, but if I were trapped in the sewers and came upon a ladder leading up to a manhole cover, I would think that climbing up the ladder until I could get a shoulder on the cover and then doing a leg press might do the trick. Legs are generally much stronger than arms in a situation like that.

Of course, I am speculating, as I have never been in that situation.
 
Just thinking out loud here, but if I were trapped in the sewers and came upon a ladder leading up to a manhole cover, I would think that climbing up the ladder until I could get a shoulder on the cover and then doing a leg press might do the trick.
Yes, you could in fact do that.
....but the problem would be that when you do that, you'll be pushing the lid up at an angle. As soon as it gets vertical enough for you to possibly climb out of, you will be in serious danger of it flipping all the way over. If it does that, it will f'ypu up if any part of your body is protruding out of the hole.
....and considering that you would be lifting it, it stands to reason that part of you would in fact be above the surface at that moment.

Manhole covers are removed by slightly lifting one edge, and then pulling it sideways (sliding motion) off of the hole.
...and that would a difficult thing to do from underneath it. You might lift an edge, but getting a grip and applying leverage to then slide a ~100 lb chunk of steel out of the way, would be a real chore. Especially for a kid.
 
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“2 years before the cell technology existed!”

How old are you?
I misspoke. 2 years before it was possible to phone from a moving plane... I remember when it was announced and it came out AFTER 9/11.

At the time I thought it 'interesting' they had to announce that it was possible to call from a plane in flight.
 
They say now that those calls were made from the airphones in seatbacks.

Supposedly, 37 calls were made. They say 35 were from airphones and only two were by cell phone.

As of now, there is a system in place that won't allow a cell connection from a plane in flight. At least not at commercial jet speeds.
...but at the time, that system did not exist. So it is theoretticly possible for a cell connection to have happened, but only when the plane(s) were at a lower altitude. There is no way cell calls were made from cruising altitude.
 
There were phones that passengers could use before 9/11. Expensive and did connect via satellites.

Also, I have made calls from airplanes in the 90’s with my cellphone. But calls were very short, dropped quickly.
 
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