Manhole fire on Bell Boulevard

A stretch of Bell Boulevard between 35th and 38th Avenues in Bayside filled with smoke on the afternoon of Thursday, January 15 after a manhole fire broke out under a car parked on the west side of the street.
Maria Psillos, whose Hyundai Sante Fe was parked above the manhole cover, said she went outside when she saw the smoke and immediately heard a series of loud popping sounds.
The authorities were notified and the block was cordoned off as FDNY and NYPD personnel secured the scene.
Battalion 53 Chief Lawrence Cleary speculated that the fire resulted after road salt caused underground wires to burn.