RSS
Home
On this day in NY history: New Yorkers united by the Blackout of 1965
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
The Great Blackout of 1965 (photo credit below)
Nov. 9, 1965
Forty-four years ago today, weary commuters were rushing home when the entire state plunged suddenly into darkness. What followed was fourteen hours of the largest power failure in American history, which spread 80,000 square miles throughout the Northeast and eastern Canada.
Eighty thousand New Yorkers were trapped in the subways and elevators. Thousands more were stranded in office buildings and stores. Always-glittering Broadway and Times Square were pitch black. Without any traffic signals, rush hour screeched to a halt. Area airports went dark, and planes were rerouted.
Given Cold War tensions, many were terrified that the Soviets had attacked. 5,000 off-duty policemen and 10,000 National Guardsmen were called into action to aid people and to prevent crime. People were forced to seek shelter wherever they could: in hotel lobbies, on subway platforms or on park benches. The Times later commented that the "city's hotels looked like bivouac areas."
Despite some fear and confusion, New Yorkers showed their true spirit and helped one another. Some aided the NYFD as they rescued stranded subway riders while others directed traffic. Many who ordinarily never made eye contact shared flashlights and supplies with neighbors. By midnight, the Transit Authority began to send food to those still stuck underground. As further tribute to the New York spirit, there were only a few looters and no riots.
Men of the power companies worked nonstop. By 6:58 a.m. the next day, the power was restored to New York State. Six days later, on Nov. 16, Federal Power Commission investigators discovered what had caused the outage. In Ontario, a single faulty powerline at the Sir Adam Beck Power Station No. 2 had overloaded. The 230,000 volt wire had triggered a chain reaction among other equally overburdened lines.
In the aftermath, people found themselves feeling vulnerable. Americans rethought their dependence on electricity and learned to stockpile flashlights, food, transistor radios, and batteries. The power companies began to take more preventive measures, including testing their equipment and backup generators. No one would ever forget the night of November 9, 1965 and always referred to it as "The Night the Lights Went Out."
Photo credit: LIFE, Vol. 59 No. 2 (19 November 1965) Copyright 1965 Time, Inc. Photo: George Karas
For more rich and exciting tales like this, click the white envelope below, and subscribe.
Blacklisted comic genius Zero Mostel is born
Singin' in the Rain premieres at Radio City Music Hall
First Congress meets in NY under the new Constitution
Legendary conductor and anti-Fascist Arturo Toscanini dies
First ever women only hotel The Martha Washington opens
Beatles’ first appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show, 45 years ago
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
