A New York City firefighter is being treated for serious injuries after a blown manhole cover in Brooklyn hit him Thursday night.
The fire department says it happened after crews answered a call of a manhole fire at Broadway and Greene Avenue in Bushwick just before 10 p.m.
There was an explosion, and the manhole cover hit FDNY Captain Donald Hodgkinson in the leg.
He was taken to the hospital in serious but stable condition.
Two other firefighters were also taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
Fire officials say this was a special type of manhole, not the typical circular ones typically seen in city streets.
"I heard a couple of low explosions, like boom, boom, boom. It was like extreme, a lot of smoke, a lot of crackling, like it was electrical wires or something like that," said one witness.
More than 200 people were without power following a different manhole fire earlier in another part of Brooklyn.
Flames began pouring out of a manhole on Nevins and Pacific Streets around 9 p.m.
A Con Ed employee suffered minor injuries.
Crews were still on the scene Friday morning and it’s unclear when power will be restored.
Manhole fires are common this time of year.
The salt used to treat roads mixes with melting snow and damages underground electrical wiring.