Charles/MGH

Why, yes, a train gave up the ghost at Charles/MGH this evening, following this morning's track problems.

Bostonians had their choice of venues for standing around this AM, such as Andrew. Photo by Chris Wright.

Fire on the inbound tracks between Arlington and Copley around 7:40, Jay Joynes tweets. At first, the T shut Arlington station because of heavy smoke, but shortly after 8 a.m., it shut down all Green Line service downtown. And shortly after 8:30, the T began evacuating trolleys stuck in the tunnel near Hynes and Copley stations.

The T eventually sent in some shuttle buses between stations to the west and downtown, but many commuters didn't wait. As Gracetopia tweets:

I now feel like one of the army of the commute, as I walk from Kenmore to downtown with my fellow MBTA refugees.

Lindsay Douglas, though, was one of the people who stayed behind at Kenmore:

I've never seen chaos like this. Coldest day of the year + the MBTA shuts down the green line. Yelling+angry people.

And because misery loves company, an inbound Red Line train died not long after at Charles/MGH, Rob Grover tweets. Later, another train died at Porter. Around 9:20, another train died, inbound at Andrew.

An aggrieved citizen reports:

Distasteful ad on beautiful public sculpture-MBTA station.

In a forest-trees situation, the city marked the complaint "closed," because:

This isn't graffiti. the markings on the street are for construction.

Note to Mayor's Hotline folks: Look up. And then mark the complaint closed because the MBTA is not under city jursidiction.

UPDATE, 6:10 p.m. Firefighters confirmed fire is out, get off tracks, T to restore power.

Today's track fire is by Charles/MGH and, of course, it's causing delays - not to be confused with the morning delays caused by signal problems as JFK/UMass (maybe the T needs to stop giving stops dual names).

This is the first Red Line fire since last Thursday.

Photographynatalia took this photo of the shadows at the Red Line stop the other day.

Copyright Photographynatalia. Posted in the Universal Hub pool on Flickr.

The morning after No Pants Day, Gretchen Bostrom tweets (don't read if eating):

Channel 4 reports.

The Globe reports on yesterday's dramatic Red Line rescue and says the T is reacting to "poor decision making" that led to deadly holes being covered with Bounty towels plywood by ordering all such sheets replaced with steel.

Worker with two broken legs being winched up from shaft. Photo by BFD.

UPDATE: 8:05 a.m. Dan Tobin tweets the Red Line is running again - packed to the gills. The Globe has details on the incident.

UPDATE, 7 a.m.: They got him out and he's alive.

Firefighters are at the Charles/MGH T stop this morning, attempting to extricate an MBTA power-department worker who fell 35 feet in a 2x2 concrete shaft around 4:30 a.m.

Buses are substituting for Red Line service between Kendall and Broadway.

At the scene. Photo by BFD.

Hard on the heels of last night's parrot report from the Red Line comes Libberding's report from around noon today:

was red line @ mgh. Older gentleman with a cart had a parrot. It climbed up to his shoulder and pooped on him.

Margaret introduces us to the concept of service parrots and wonders if the guy is a regular at one MIT library who has one - although she adds his parrot is better behaved than the Red Line bird - and potty trained.

Ed. question: What's next on the Red Line? A pot-bellied pig?

MBTA Transit Police report arresting a Massachusetts Bay Community College student yesterday on charges he fondled a woman's buttocks on a Red Line train between Charles/MGH and Park Street last month.

Brian Canning, 26, was charged with indecent assault and battery after his alleged victim spotted him again last week, about a month after the initial attack.

It's not just that there was a "medical emergency" at Charles/MGH (although if you're going to have a medical emergency ..), but that an inbound train chose to die on the Longfellow this morning

"The worst is having people walk by, watching you not move," Marti V. tweets. At least, until somebody pushes the emergency button, apparently just because they can.

Ben Becker adds: "On bridge for at least 30 min, probably 40. Charles platform now so packed that people can't move."

Photo of Charles/MGH platform after the T asked everybody to just walk to Park Street.

The MBTA reports a dead Red Line train at Charles/MGH.

Antsy tweets it just took 20 minutes to get from Kendall to Charles/MGH on the Red Line.

UPDATE: Not wanting to feel left out, the Green Line is having problems too, this time due to power issues at Government Center.

Wicked Local Somerville reports the MBTA is looking at connecting the Red and Blue lines at Charles/MGH - and wonders:

Would be nice if they concentrated their money and time on ongoing projects like the Green Line Extension and solving disputes like the placement of the maintenance facility in Inner Belt instead of coming up with additional ones in this economy.

Aaron Weber employed secret-Ninja skills to keep an MBTA transit police squad from checking his bags the other night at MGH/Charles. Oh, OK, he simply walked on the other side of the information booth from the cops.

Oh, darn, today was No Pants Day on the Red Line and we missed it.

More people with no pants.

Oddjob60 provides the latest proof that T drivers and conductors just aren't going to stop the train to see why the doors aren't closing properly, with a report from Red Line car 01625 at Charles/MGH around 7:30 this morning:

... As people went out the doors, even before anyone tried getting on, the doors closed. People inside and outside put their arms in the way, and even tried to force the doors open, which should have sent some kind of signal to the conductor so she (I looked later, it was a she) would reopen the doors, right. Nope. Not even one of those "please don't block the doors" announcements. People finally gave up, the doors closed,and off we went. At least 10 people on my car had to get off at Kendall so they could ride back to Charles. ...

A fire broke out under the tracks at Charles/MGH station on the Red Line at around 8pm this evening. As of 9:20pm, the second alarm has been called in, the third rail shut down, trains near the station evacuated and shuttle bus service has begun.

Expect disruptions to last through the end of service on 5/1.

EDIT: Red Line service was restored at 10:49pm.