Lights Out
 

No note on where this is...looks like it might be in Brooklyn

http://msdelta.net/~sycamore/cellar/blackout.jpg

The ferry terminal on NYC's west side

http://msdelta.net/~sycamore/cellar/blackout2.jpg

(Photos from WNBC-TV, New York)

Well, how are all those people going to get home? Walk?

Well, it hit the nation's largest city, a good swath of the US, the capital of Canada, and its largest city...all at the same time. Not to mention, there were no warnings of impending blackouts or brownouts in the US. And as far as New York--it's already been hit by 9/11, and was left a mess after the Blackout of '77. And it will be dark in just over an hour.

I don't know about you, but I'd say the story as a whole is a big deal.

I can't see the pics.

Plus, security cameras and alarm systems will not be functional. Stores will be ripe for the picking!

Juju, they're not very good (I think they were taken from a helicopter), but they should be showing up:

http://msdelta.net/~sycamore/cellar/blackout.jpg

http://msdelta.net/~sycamore/cellar/blackout2.jpg

Everything I've seen and heard so far is talking about how calm everyone has been thus far. Good stuff!

Yeah, I already tried the direct links. It just times out after a while and says "503 - Connection failed".

I'm just assuming it's a temporary problem associated with some server somewhere with no power, but I thought I'd mention it nonetheless.

But has Las Vegas had a total power outage since 9/11? And wasn't Nevada somewhat tied into the California energy crisis a few years ago? Not to mention, Las Vegas is a podunk town compared to Toronto and New York. (No offense meant, just a comparison of size and people.)

It hasn't affected you, and it hasn't affected me either. But this would have grabbed my attention in any case b/c I know New York. I know what it's like on a normal workday. I know what it's like during the afternoon rush hour. And while things have apparently gone smoothly thus far, I can only imagine what it would be like to be stuck in Manhattan: trying to get off the island, unable to use the transportation systems I normally do, unable to take money out of the bank, etc.

Here's why it's important: people are on life support in those cities.

Heh. I promise that something went wrong to cause this failure, which means something can go wrong with them. Is it likely? No.

(Is it likely that what happened today would happen?)

It's important because nowadays, lives depend on electricity. Even when there's a single backup, that's not always good enough.

And anything that happens in New York these days tends to have repercussions beyond New York...especially in this neck of the woods (Philadelphia, DC).

Some hospitals were apparently having problems with getting power earlier, but Bloomberg says they all have power now.

20 minutes until sunset...