A System of Tubes

No, not a Ted Stevens post, just a reference. This is actually an underground steampipe post. As in the steampipe that exploded in NYC a few days ago (and receiving beaucoup media coverage, for some reason). Right now on NBC 4 they're covering pipes in the District, and whether they can explode! Oh, my.

I don't know about steampipes (what are they for?). But I do know that water pipes, or water mains, are a serious public works/infrastructure problem in most "older" cities. Many of those pipes have been in the ground for a long time, and they aren't in good shape. I remember back in Cleveland, during the Great Blackout of 2003 and the days after, when the city's water system failed, basically completely, the news reported that four water mains were busting in the city every day--twice the normal rate. For the mathematically challenged, that means that two water mains bust every day, on average, in Cleveland. That's what I remember, anyway.

So why should old steampipes be any more reliable? Now, of course, steam under high pressure is a helluva lot more dangerous than water.