The New York Fire Department posted an alert on Twitter at around 8:50 p.m. local time warning of multiple manhole fires near west 50th Street in Hell's Kitchen.
Videos shared with Reuters show police barricading the street, and flames rising from the underground through a manhole. Eyewitness, Mike Spencer told Reuters that the first explosion was the strongest, causing "everything to vibrate aggressively" and the lights in the restaurant he was at, flickered.
Local media reported that people were evacuated from New World Stages theatre, which cancelled "Jersey Boys", a musical performance due to play that night. Cause of the explosions are still under investigation.