New York City: Blackouts in 1965, 1977, 2003

The media characterization of each of three major blackouts that affected New York City in recent history reflected a particular moment in the rise and fall of economic stability and social security: calm in the Great Northeast Blackout of 1965; chaos in the New York City Blackout of 1977; and post-traumatic 9/11 adaptability in the Great North American Blackout of 2003. The blackout of 1977 poses the most dramatic narrative, book-ended by the other two, which feature stalled elevators, stranded commuters, neighborhood gatherings, and outdoor barbecues. The 1977 blackout took place against the backdrop of the city’s failing fiscal situation, which had already reached crisis proportions evident in rampant unemployment and repeated landlord-financed arson to gain financial damages from fire insurance, resulting in fragmented neighborhoods.

—Betti-Sue Hertz

I always liked, even as a teenager in 1965, the way a disruption, such as a power failure or major snow storm, could tie up an entire city. I found it rather humbling to see a city with the size and energy of New York brought to a standstill. It’s always been a great reminder for me that we are not really in control, no matter how much we like to believe we are, and I’m constantly surprised to find that more people don’t see that.

—Survey #118,1965 —The Great Northeast Blackout[1]

Wednesday, July 13, 1977 had been a hot and sultry day. The evening promised to be equally as uncomfortable. The air-conditioners in the skyscrapers of Manhattan were working overtime to keep the buildings cool. At about 8:30 pm, it happened again. This time, things would be very different for the citizens of New York City. The streets of some neighborhoods looked more like smoking war zones. The statistics of the NYPD reported over 3,000 arrests and more than 500 cops injured during the night of disorder. There were also hundreds of fires during the night. It was not unusual for civilians or non-members of the NYPD to take their own actions against the looters. This only added to the sense of chaos in the streets. “The cops just stood there and did nothing” was often heard. It was a mess.

—Edward D. Reuss, New York City cop[2]

Our part of Manhattan was the last to get power. For 29 hours, we had no water. It takes electrical power to pump water to high-rise apartments. No power, no water. No water, no bathing, and no flushable toilet.

They say the spike that plunged 50 million people into blackout lasted ten seconds. It felt longer. I was designing a logo when my screen went black, my network hubs and power supplies began flashing like dying fireflies, and the silence of the studio was pierced by an ear-splitting thrub, thrub, thrub. It sounded like nuclear disaster. My first foolish thought was that our network had been attacked; then I thought my Mac’s power supply had shorted out; then I noticed the other computers were frozen and the phones were dead.

—Jeffrey Zeldman, August 16, 2003, 6:00 p.m. EST[3]

-Betti-Sue Hertz

[1] This is an excerpt of a text written for an online survey conducted by the Blackout History Project, http://blackout.gmu.edu/blacko... D. Reuss, “Chaos in the Darkness,” excerpt, June 2001,

http://www.nycop.com/Stories/Jun_01/Chaos_in_the_Darkness/body_chaos_in_the_darkness.html

[3] Jeffrey Zeldman, “29 Hours,” excerpt http://www.zeldman.com/daily/0703b.shtml#twentynine