14: Subway Groundbreaking, a Plywood Wall, and a Steamy Elevator

A Great Big City — New York City News, History, and Events

• 23 years ago on March 17, 1996 — The city hospitals and the FDNY combine emergency response units to form the FDNY EMS and provide ambulance service citywide. In February 2019, the Daily News reported that the city EMS handled 83% of calls to the FDNY, and did so with a workforce less than half as large as the number of firefighters.

• 61 years ago on March 19, 1958 — A fire at the Monarch Underwear Company kills 24 and injures 15 — Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire

• 2 years ago on March 20, 2017 — Timothy Caughman is stabbed with a sword and killed on 36th Street in Hell's Kitchen by a white man from Baltimore who had traveled to Manhattan planning to kill black men

• Pro-Trump graffiti vandal nabbed with fake wall

• 29 years ago on March 25, 1990 — The Happy Land nightclub fire kills 87 in West Farms in the Bronx, becoming the city's deadliest fire since the Triangle Shirtwaist fire

• March 21 in History: Charles Lindbergh Receives the Medal of Honor in 1928

• March 23 in History: Elisha Otis Installs First Passenger Elevator

• IKEA comes to Manhattan

• March 24 in History: Ground-Breaking Ceremony for the Rapid Transit System on "Tunnel Day"

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Park of the day

• Brook Park

Concert Calendar

• Ulver is playing Irving Plaza on Friday, March 22nd at 7pm.
• Weakened Friends, coping skills, Hit Like a Girl, and Nervous Dater are playing The Kingsland on Friday, March 22nd at 7pm.
• Hollis Brown is playing Mercury Lounge on Friday, March 22nd at 7:30pm.
• Homeshake, pink siifu, and Yves Jarvis are playing Brooklyn Steel on Friday, March 22nd at 8pm.
• Jawbreaker, Pohgoh, and War on Women are playing Brooklyn Steel on Saturday, March 23rd at 7pm.
• Vhs Collection and Future Generations are playing Irving Plaza on Saturday, March 23rd at 8pm.
• Mariah Carey is playing Radio City Music Hall on Monday, March 25th at 8pm.
• Music and Conversation and The Zombies are playing The Cutting Room on Tuesday, March 26th at 6pm.
• Yves Tumor is playing National Sawdust on Tuesday, March 26th at 8pm.

Find more fun things to do at agreatbigcity.com/events

New York Fact

Here's something you may not have known about New York:

• At 33 square miles, Manhattan is the smallest borough, but has the greatest population density of any city or county in the U.S.

Weather

The extreme highs and lows for this week in weather history:
Record High: 84°F on March 21, 1921
Record Low: 10°F on March 21, 1885

Weather for the week ahead:
Rain today and tomorrow, with high temperatures rising to 60°F on Sunday. Gusty winds will be of concern on Friday the 22nd and may reach 40mph gusts overnight into Saturday

Thanks for listening to A Great Big City. Follow along 24 hours a day on social media @agreatbigcity or email [e-mail] with any news, feedback, or topic suggestions. Subscribe to AGBC News wherever you listen to podcasts: iTunes, Google Play, or Player FM, Spotify, and RadioPublic or listen to each episode on the podcast pages. If you enjoy the show, subscribe and leave a review wherever you're listening and visit agreatbigcity.com/podcast to see show notes and extra links for each episode.

Intro and outro music: 'Start the Day' by Lee Rosevere