Times Square Viacom Headquarters Partially Evacuated After Smoke Fills 2 Floors
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Two floors were evacuated at the Viacom headquarters in Times Square late Wednesday afternoon, after an electrical problem caused the floors to fill with smoke.
A transformer in a 33rd floor electrical closet generated a major release of smoke on the 33rd and 34th floors of the 54-story One Astor Plaza building, at 1515 Broadway at 45th Street, according to Viacom.
The floors were evacuated as a result, Viacom said in a company memo. The incident also caused power to be cut to odd-numbered floors in the building between the 33rd and 53rd floors.
The One Astor Plaza building houses Viacom corporate headquarters and MTV studios, as well as the Minskoff and Best Buy theaters.
A photo at the scene showed a major FDNY response with at least 10 fire engines and trucks.
The FDNY and building owners cleared the smoke and deemed the affected floors safe to reoccupy, Viacom said.
The building will be open for business on Thursday, Viacom said.