Stinky steam
By adamg - Fri, 06/01/2007 - 2:52pm.
As the Herald reports, Tom Menino is ready to blow his top over recent steam explosions out of pipes owned by Trigen-Boston.
Observations from the Underbelly writes that even when not emulating Vesuvius, the steam just smells bad:
... I happen to work near an especially active stinky steam outlet on Stuart Street. So active, in fact, that a makeshift chimney shoddily constructed of steel barrels has been set in place in the middle of the street. Now, in the winter, I would just stand there smoking my Marb's and complain silently to myself about the ungodly stench, but now that it's warm, i have to wonder, do we really need to be subjected to this? ...
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Legionella?
Nope, this is not a misplaced comment.
I just wanted to point out that the steam from these makeshift and leaky assemblages might be a much greater threat for legionella than the misters on the T ever could be.
If there is any water in the 35-50C range involved with that steam, it could be a way to get Boston to get its rear in gear on these things now that summer is here.
I think somebody should raise the specter of it, soon. Not just as a talking point, but because many of the historical legionella outbreaks worldwide have been the result of cooling tower steam emissions.