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US Blackout Reports

Major power outage hits New York, other large cities

This was all over the news and on the net.  It is pretty strange how all the power to these areas just knocked out all at the same time and no one really knows for sure how it happened.  I am sure, they will find some reason for the huge blackout by morning.  They even notified President Bush while he was in California and spoke briefly to the public about it on tv.

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Wow, a whole chunk of Northeastern US in total blackout. My sympathies go out to you all over there. Seriously, I can imagine how tough it is when electric power is cut off .... we have become so dependent on such amenities that we sometimes do not appreciate the value of it. Lots of perishable foodstuffs will be wasted, conditions will become unbearable if the weather is hot too, and the critical services like hospitals, etc.

Thankfully, it has been announced that this is no act of terrorism. I am sure that was the first thing on everyone's mind when the blackout happened. Hope you guys are okay, and hope everything comes back on soon.

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Thanks for your kind words, Fireduck.  :)  I don't live where the blackout happened, but just looking at the news footage, gave me chills.  And yes, you are right about the first thing that came to everyone's mind was that it was another terroritst attack.  Thank goodness, it wasn't.  :)  On the news, they said that it wasn't the first time for this big of a blackout had happened.  This was like the third time it has happened.  So, hopefully, most of the areas will have the power restored sometime today.  :)

Reports Blackout US

I got this in my email this evening and thought I would share it.  

Nightline Daily Email
August 15, 2003

TONIGHT'S SUBJECT: Power is still out for much of the area hit by the blackout, and people are trying to cope. At the same time, I think all of us probably reacted the same way when we first heard the news: terrorism? Just how vulnerable are we?



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It may be fun for the first hour or two. It sort of feels like camping in the back yard, or a bit of an adventure. People get to walk where normally only cars are allowed. People are nicer to each other. Candles set the mood. But in the area hit by the power outage yesterday, it's hot. No air conditioning. People were trapped. And it may be days before all of the power is restored. After a short time, it's no fun at all.

And yesterday's events may have been a bit of a wake-up call. Terrorism was dismissed as a cause pretty early yesterday. But the vulnerability of our power system to some sort of attack was pretty well demonstrated to the world. Just how vulnerable are we? Could terrorists take out the power system? You have to think that some of them were watching yesterday's events and thinking those very thoughts to themselves.

So tonight, for those of you not in the affected area at least, you'll see a report from ABC News correspondent Don Dahler on what's happening up in New York and the affected areas. John Donvan will take a look at the whole vulnerability issue. And one group of people watched yesterday's events with some satisfaction: the Iraqis. They have been without power for a long time, and there were spontaneous demonstrations demanding that power be restored, and making fun of the plight of the folks here in the U.S. ABC News correspondent John Berman will report on their suggestions for how to cope with no power.

And for those of you who won't get this email, or see the broadcast, I hope that your power comes back on as soon as possible. It stops being fun pretty quickly.

Reports Blackout US

We have become so accustomed to the convenience of a flick of the switch that we so often stop to appreciate the good things we have in our lives. I think it is a good time for each of us to pause and ponder over this 'calamity' and in our own private ways, give thanks for the daily luxury we have because .... Electric power. I for one, am thankful for the flick of a switch, the turning of the faucet, and the press of the remote that I do everyday.

Kind of give me more food for thought for all those people in less fortunate areas in the world who have no hope of such amenities "Restored" In hours or days.... Because they just do not have the infrastructure.    

US Blackout Reports

Fireduck, this is true.  Many people do take advantage of the fact that when they flick the switch, the lights will come on.  Sounds, funny, but, it reminds me of all those stories, my great-grandparents used to tell me about the way things were when they were growing up.  It always made appreciate the luxuries of flipping the switch and the light came on, running water in our home, and an inside private bathroom.

US Blackout Reports

They think they found out the cause of the blackout.

Blackout trail leads to Ohio
Power company says alarm failed to signal early problems

Three transmission lines in Ohio apparently started a chain reaction that caused the widespread blackout across parts of the Northeast, Midwest and southern Canada, according to utility officials.

U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham has set up a meeting with his Canadian counterpart and is to tour Sunday talks shows explaining his department's investigation into the cause of the outage.

"We've got to quickly get to the bottom of the question of what happened, how it spread, and what we need to do to make sure it doesn't happen again," he told reporters Saturday.

https://edition.cnn.com/2003/US/08/17/power...tage/index.html

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I thought you might like to see this picture from space of how the blackout looked. I was received this in my email so not sure who gets credits: