Electrified Manhole Cover? Check. Precious Puppy? Check. Film Crew Shooting? Check.

The new “New York story” has nothing to do with pizza, Broadway dreams or jazz but rather something more current:

Soho resident Jon Doran was going out for his morning cup of joe Wednesday and walking up Thompson St. with his yellow lab, Socha. They were forced to take a slight detour since the film crew of the Biography Channel had commandeered the sidewalks adjacent to the handball courts at Spring and Thompson Sts. while shooting promos.

Crossing back to the west side of Thompson, midblock, Socha (pronounced Sasha) stepped into a puddle in the street near the curb in front of 105 Thompson St. and began yelping and squealing like Doran had never heard before. The dog stiffened and fell into the water. Doran pulled her out — all 80 pounds, of what felt like dead weight. Socha appeared O.K. and her owner was mystified. A passerby, who witnessed these events, told him, “Your dog has been electrocuted.”

(While Socha clearly had received a severe electric shock, she wasn’t electrocuted, since “electrocuted” means to be killed by an electric charge.)

In the middle of the puddle, there was a manhole.

Immediately — the time was 10:48 a.m. — Doran called 911. While waiting for first-responders, he policed the puddle so no one else would wander into it. At 12:15 p.m. he called 911 again, pleading for someone to respond. At 12:38, almost two hours from the first call, police finally arrived, followed shortly after by firefighters. The area was cordoned off.