Long Ago, Working Under the Ground

Way below the cracked, filthy concrete of the city, water courses in huge volumes, through tunnels big enough to drive eighteen wheelers through. The lifeblood of the city, pouring from northern reservoirs southward to the stone, glass and brickwork of the big city. The routine expectations of over eight million people are met daily. Turn the tap. Water. Water for coffee? A shower? Water is life, for everyone, but in a megalopolis, impractical, outsized demand creates the need for extraordinary response and ingenuity.

And hard work. On this Labor Day, I hark back to a story that spoke to my photographic gut in ways few stories have. Got to go underground with the Sandhogs. More photos on our Instagram Reel. A legendary union whose first project was the building of the supports for the Brooklyn Bridge, and the Sandhogs have built much of the infrastructure of the City. They built the tunnels under the rivers that connect the city to Jersey and Brooklyn. They built Water Tunnels 1 and 2, and have worked for many years now on the construction of the desperately needed Tunnel 3.

It is difficult, dangerous and essential work. Largely an Irish and West Indian union, the workers say goodbye to the sunlight in the early morning, and travel down as much as 500 feet below the surface to once again blast and drill. (My wife Annie’s uncle was a Sandhog for many years, and has stories.) The monumental scale of it is difficult to comprehend. Imagine building St. Patrick’s Cathedral 500 feet under the earth’s surface. I chose to mention St. Pat’s because I remember a reverent quote from one of the foremen who showed me the ropes down there. He swept his arm towards the main tunnel hub and said, “See this? This is our cathedral.”

It’s a good holiday, Labor Day. It’s good to celebrate all who work, from skyscraper offices, to the street, from the farm to the city, from the home to the office. And to celebrate the unnoticed work, done far under the ground, which sustains us all. Hope everyone has enjoyed the weekend.

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