NEW YORK CITY (VINnews) – A second straight day of scorching temperatures triggered a major NJ Transit breakdown Thursday, snarling evening rush-hour service at New York Penn Station and leaving thousands of commuters stranded as the July 4 holiday weekend got underway.

With temperatures soaring, NJ Transit officials urged rail customers to seek alternative transportation, offering cross-honoring on NJ Transit and private carrier buses, PATH trains and NY Waterway ferries.

“What we want people to do is use all the methods we are making available…to try and use all of those systems to get home,” NJ Transit President and CEO Kris Kolluri said. “It’s the most excessive temperatures we have had this year.”

Inside Penn Station, conditions deteriorated rapidly as the temperature reached 148 degrees, according to NJ Transit. Commuters described the scene as unbearable.

“It feels like a sauna in here. I hate it. I hate it,” one rider named Cammy told Eyewitness News. “There’s like a million people, look, a million people. The body heat in here is crazy. I’m wet right now.”

Another commuter, Natalie, said the ordeal was the final straw. “I’m literally moving out of New Jersey to avoid New Jersey Transit. I’m moving to New York City next month,” she said.

Service disruptions mounted throughout the evening. Trains faced cancellations and delays of up to 90 minutes. Sagging wires halted at least two trains, and in one case, a rescue train was dispatched to Harrison to assist approximately 300 passengers stranded on a disabled train. It took about 45 minutes to tow the train back to Hoboken Terminal, where air conditioning was available and police distributed water.

The century-old Hackensack Drawbridge between Secaucus and East Rutherford became stuck open for 25 minutes due to the heat, prompting NJ Transit to suspend openings of other rail bridges for the remainder of the evening commute.

A fire broke out at Hoboken Terminal after 5 p.m., sending smoke across track 7 and causing riders to flee the platform.

As of late Thursday, NJ Transit reported up to 60-minute delays and cancellations on select trains due to heat-related equipment issues. Midtown Direct service was diverted to Hoboken. Tickets and passes were being cross-honored on buses, PATH at Newark Penn Station, Hoboken Terminal, 33rd Street in New York, and NY Waterway ferries.

The disruptions come as forecasters warn of continued high temperatures across the region, testing the resilience of the Northeast’s aging transit infrastructure during one of the busiest travel weekends of the summer