Results tagged “metrocenter>”

Reports of smoke on the tracks at Metro Center starting at about 9:20 a.m. caused major delays on the Red Line this morning, with trains sharing the same track between Judiciary Square and Farragut North. WMATA says the situation had been resolved by about 9:40 a.m., but delays persist in both directions on the Red Line. UPDATE 11:09 a.m.: Metro says the cause of the smoke at Metro Center this morning was a fire that broke out after one of the train's collector shoes, which are attached to the third rail, fell off. WMATA is investigating what could have caused such a piece of equipment to disconnect from the train. Each train has four collector shoes.

An update on this morning's fire in the 1000 block of F Street NW, from the Post. Five firefighters who responded to the two-alarm blaze required medical care after the fire was contained: one broke his hand, and four others were treated for medical issues related to exertion, including elevated blood pressure. It also looks like the building in question was the one that housed that D.C.-themed souvenir shop, though the fire began in a vacant part of the building. The souvenir shop sustained heavy water damage. No civilian injuries have been reported. Roads should be cleared for the evening commute.

Thanks to the tipster who sent in this view from her office window of fire crews working to put out the two-alarm blaze at 11th and F Streets NW. In addition to F Street currently being closed between 9th and 11th streets, we hear that portions of 10th and 11th Streets are blocked by additional fire trucks beyond F Street. Here's the AP report via WTOP.

Those of you who read the Post's letters to the editor over the weekend might have heard of the videogame Fallout 3, which hit store shelves today. Those of you who've been through Metro Center in the past few weeks have certainly heard of it — ads for the game are plastered over seemingly every available surface. It's those ads that prompted the aforementioned letter. Its author, Joseph Anzalone, objects to the post-apocalyptic renderings of D.C. that feature prominently in some of the advertisements:

The people of our city do not need a daily reminder that Washington is a prime target for an attack. We do not need a daily reminder of what our worst fears look like.

He has a point: the possibility of being subjected to a tedious character-customization process and wooden voice-acting by Liam Neeson is, indeed, a grim prospect to contemplate — yet it's one that Washingtonians face every day (the radioactive destruction sounds like a drag, too). More seriously, the renderings from the ads — many of which can be seen on Flickr — really are pretty grim. And Anzalone is certainly right to point out that defenses of the campaign on First Amendment grounds — like this one — are a bit silly. But in the end they're just advertisements, and far from the most offensively stupid ones in the Metro system (does Raytheon really think that Crystal City shoppers are likely to pick up an extra attack helicopter on the strength of a vinyl banner?). Besides, we generally get a kick out of pop culture's attempts to portray the city, and this is no exception. But maybe others don't feel as cavalierly. What do you think about the ads?

The electricity is back on! Traffic was more or less flowing normally through downtown just after 11 a.m. Pepco reports that power has now been restored to the entire affected area.

Dogs and cats, living together!

Another holiday weekend, another total mess on Metro revolving around fixing the sagging platforms at Metro Center. WMATA is alerting customers to add an additional 30 minutes of travel time to every trip on the Red, Blue and Orange lines this weekend due to the Metro Center platform work.

The Metro can be a boring place. Next stop, yadda yadda, doors on the right, zzz. There are sometimes crazy people on the train, or somebody singing, or something amusing happening, but generally it's a snooze fest. Thankfully some Metro train operators like to change things up a bit, wishing people a good day or just being funny, rather than the usual "Next stop Judisherary Square" script. And we like that. Better not give this guy one of those popcorn tins though, you might get arrested.

Last night, Fox 5 reported on an alarming attack of a gay man by six or seven men on the Metro. "Nathaniel," as he's referred to in the report, was riding alone on a train Friday night. As the doors closed at Metro Center, the group surrounded and beat Nathaniel, kicking him as he fell to the floor and yelling "faggot". Nathaniel managed to get off the train at the Smithsonian station, and he ran...

This is a great time of the year for beer lovers. Winter, more than any other season, is when craft brewers get a chance to flex their creativity and brew some unusual beers that satisfy the palate and warm the heart. Although many have traditionally been called Christmas beers, most brewers these days are going with some variation on the "winter" theme, in a large part because of the stigma of seeing a "Christmas" beer...

Washington has a ton of good things, but also a lot of problems. One we often hear about is a general lack of customer service in some local businesses — sometimes people are slow, rude, forgetful, or a combination of the three. We've seen it all over, from fancy joints to Mickey D's, but it seems to be worse here than elsewhere on the East Coast. Somebody could make a lot of money by renting...

Many things seem more important in D.C. than they would be anywhere else. It's pretty difficult to impress somebody in most places by telling them you met the Undersecretary of such and such. Appearing on C-SPAN is more likely to be subject to quizzical looks rather than admiration in other towns. Most folks elsewhere wouldn't know they just saw George Will honking at pedestrians. And obviously, people talk about bills and laws and politics more...

Good morning, Washington. If you're the kind of person who delights in reading angry product reviews on consumer web sites, head over here and read some of the comments about the Presidential Inn on New York Ave. Highlights include "I have never been so disgusted with a place in all my life," "I can't even believe that it is running legally," and, tellingly, "upon my departure I noticed small red bumps all over my body."...

WMATA has issued a service alert that the entrance to the Metro Center station at 13th and G Streets NW is closed due to a police situation. A reader let us know that he can see bomb units on the scene from his office window, with a bomb-seeking robot being assembled to go into the metro entrance with a team of police dogs. The service alert indicates that only this entrance is closed and that...

This week at Overheard, we'd like to take a moment to give thanks for a segment of the population that we feel is unfairly maligned. That's right, we're talking about you, Mr. Stares Blatantly at Women's Breasts on the Metro. And you, sir, who just nearly walked into a pole while leering at the woman who just walked past. We raise our glasses to the guy surreptitiously taking pictures of girls' rear ends on the...

Nobody enjoys having to muscle through a dense crowd of people on the metro platform. Especially on those days when everyone is so eager to get on the train that they don't even wait for anyone to get off before surging onboard. Times like that, we wish we had some magical power to transport past the crowd, but then again if we could do that, we wouldn't be taking metro to begin with, now would...

Written by DCist contributor Eric Denman As summer lingers on, the average D.C. resident may be tempted to stay indoors, limit excursions, and camp out in front of the A/C unit with a tongue-numbingly cold, mass-produced lager. There is a better option! A nice Belgian beer can quench your thirst while also satisfying your palate. Although some Belgian styles may be a bit heavy for summer, many of them fit the bill perfectly (Witbier and...

Temp work is more than just a last resort to keep from having to beg your parents for money after getting fired for youthful indiscretions at your previous job. It can be a valuable learning experience. Not only can you discover that it really is possible to be even more expendable than an intern, but you can find your way to parts of office life you might never have considered before. There's the ever-popular...

"Listen, not a year goes by, not a year, that I don't hear about some escalator accident involving some bastard kid which could have easily been avoided had some parent — I don't care which one — but some parent conditioned him to fear and respect that escalator." —Brodie, Mallrats I was conditioned perhaps a little too heavily to fear and respect the escalator. While I had no trouble riding up, getting on from the...

What makes a champion? Is it commitment, the ability to spend the long hours necessary honing a skill to a razor's edge, forgoing the simple pleasures of idle laziness the rest of us take for granted? Is it drive, that fire in the belly that pushes a winner on, past discouragement, past early failures, past the point when lesser beings throw in the towel? Maybe it's simply birthright, taking advantage of those innate abilities that...

Tomorrow morning marks the annual running of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. The race, which takes place on the National Mall, begins at 8 a.m., with several pre-race events as well. To accommodate the 50,000 people expected to participate, Metro will begin operating two hours early, at 5 a.m., with trains running every 12 minutes from the end of each line. Metro has not scheduled any track maintenance during the day on...

Written by DCist Contributor Gayle S. Putrich It’s springtime in D.C. and apparently, if you’re a rock star chef, that means it’s time to open a moderately priced, bistro/brasserie/kinda casual place. Thanks to this little trend, I’ve managed to score some seriously good eats without going broke. But if you haven’t got the cash or the time to take the Tour of Bistros right now, stick with one of many reasonably priced delectable dishes at...

The park in downtown Washington, D.C. named for John "Black Jack" Pershing tends not to do justice to the man who achieved the highest rank of any person ever to serve in the United States military. In 1919, in recognition of his remarkable career and service in the Great War, Congress elected to promote General Pershing to the rank of General of the Armies—a position created especially for him. These days his namesake park, located...

For the last few weeks you couldn't read any D.C.-area food publication without seeing something about Robert Wiedmaier's Brasserie Beck. And all before it even opened. From Wiedmaier guest hosting Todd Kliman's chog, two pre-opening mentions in DCist's Weekly Feed, and frequent but casual mentions by The Washington Post and the blogosphere. And here Beck's is being written about yet again. Whoever the restaurant's publicist is, she's sure earning her keep. The best way to...

Today we continue a new feature highlighting our favorite reader comments. Thanks guys, and keep 'em coming! This week: lots of griping about the government and skepticism toward all manner of development. Also, panda porn fluffers and public urination. DCist is one classy joint! ----- >> Lots of readers were shocked to learn Warehouse is facing closure due to skyrocketing property taxes. Steve Goldenberg said, I love this town, but it's really sad that there...

As of yesterday, Metro was placed among the many city agencies with pricey downtown digs currently being considered for more a affordable address. Mayor Fenty approached Metro yesterday with the idea of selling its eight-story headquarters at 600 5th St. in Northwest and relocating to a new, state-of-the-art facility at the Anacostia Metro station. Fenty and city officials say that such a move would provide an economic boon to both the downtown and Southeast areas,...

As you've no doubt heard, we're putting on our best coats and walking shoes to fight for voting rights with a march and rally this afternoon. Several blocks will closed to traffic during the events, which kick off at 2:30 p.m. in Freedom Plaza with a march that leads to a rally at the Capitol Reflecting Pool beginning at 4:00 p.m. Between these times Pennsylvania Ave. NW from 3rd to 14th Sts. and 3rd St....

For a while there, the folks at Metro were using the tagline, "Metro Opens Doors" to market all the transit services they offered. While that particular slogan seems to have fallen by the wayside, this afternoon gives us the opportunity to resurrect it, if slightly altered: Metro Opens Baseball Season. Baseball fans across the city will be ditching work early and heading over to RFK for the Washington Nationals' home opener, at 1 p.m against...

> > Tonight's hidden agenda: those plucky plucks from McSweeney's are in town tonight screening Wholphin, the "Audio-Visual" version of their magazine, The Believer. Admission is free and light refreshments will be served, but you should probably take anything they say about "lifetime subscriptions" with several grains of salt. At the Center for American Progress, 1333 H St. NW, 10th Floor. Take Orange/Blue to McPherson Square Station or Red to Metro Center. > > The...

Everyone has that one friend. You know the one. The one who steadfastly maintains, Rain Man-style, that he is an excellent driver. Yet you know that the simple act of taking the passenger seat with him behind the wheel tends to be an exercise in faith that today is not your day to die. Then there's that other friend. The borderline racist/misogynist/homophobe/pick your offensive personality type, whose attitudes usually hover just below your tolerance line....