Where were you during the 2003 blackout?

[+ FreshFluff]

It's the 14th anniversary of the 2003 blackout that hit NYC and much of the northeastern US. Where were you when the blackout hit?

 

http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1426555.1376493254!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_750/blackout.jpg

[rvwnsd]

Living in San Diego thinking smugly "that would never happen here." Until this.

[MichiganMan]

Where was I.....in the dark!

[+ poolboy48220]

Home, near Detroit. I barely had enough gas in the car to make it home from work and all the gas stations were closed, so no way of heading out of town to escape it, so homebound for several days.

[+ WilliamM]

Many parts of the Northeast were not affected, including Philadelphia.

[nycguy]

I was on a NJ Transit train.

[+ sync]

I don't remember.

[+ Charlie]

My partner and I were supposed to be celebrating our 35th anniversary that day, but I had a bad case of shingles and had no interest in doing anything. I was watching TV in Philly when news of the blackout in NYC interrupted the broadcast. The first reaction was fear that it was a terrorist attack, but soon it became clear that it was just another regional power failure, like 1965 and 1977, two other years when I happened to be watching TV in Philly when it happened. In 1965, however, my partner was still living in NYC and had to walk home from his office on Bryant Park to his apartment on W. 101st and Broadway.

[+ sniper]

I was on what was probably the last plane out of Newark Airport to San Fran. Just as we were boarding the fire alarms all started blaring but everyone just shrugged and got on the plane. when we landed the gate attendants were all "How did you get out? There's a huge blackout in the Northeast." I was on the West Coast through the whole thing and came back and only thing I had to deal with was tossing out some melted/refrozen ice cream.

[ScottLMT]

I remember it was a Thursday and I was at work in NYC. Luckily I was on the 14th floor and only 25 blocks to Port Authority. Waited for bus for a few hours. Luckily the next day, I had planned to go to gay campground, so I didn't need electricity ;-)

[+ poolboy48220]

The first reaction was fear that it was a terrorist attack

I remember that reaction! My office mate was the first to hear about it (our building hadn't lost power yet) and she yelled "We're under attack!"

[+ FreshFluff]

I was in a midtown building and we thought it was just a building blackout. When we found out it was bigger, one of the guards in the building said it was terrorism. Like everyone, I walked home. On the way, I saw a fluffy, overheated Samoyed lying on his side. His owner was putting cold water on his paws to cool him down.

 

I lived in an UES high rise. I had no flashlight and didn't want to risk using candles, so I went up and down 30 flights several times in total darkness.

 

We were one of the last areas to get our power back; it took almost 3 days. Watching everything--street lights, signs etc--come back to life was really something.

 

Here's one thing I never understood: Why did tourists staying in hotels, like these Renaissance guests, opt to sleep on the street? Sure, it was sweltering on the high floors, but would the street really be better?

http://graphics7.nytimes.com/images/2003/08/15/nyregion/15cnd_bo-hotel.jpg

[+ nycman]

I was at the gym in the shower.....

 

No joke.

 

It was a mess trying to finish showering, finding my locker,

getting my Masterlock to open, getting dressed, and finding

my way out of the gym. The whole time thinking NYC was

under attack. There was no emergency lighting in the locker

room. You quickly realize just how important that is when

you're butt naked in a real emergency.

[+ poolboy48220]

It was kind of magical to watch everything--street lights, signs etc--come back to life.

I was in the back yard reading and I heard the fan in the window come on again. I jumped in the gar to get to the gas station, and there was already a line; mostly people who'd forgotten how to use a gas pump in those three days without power

[Guest]

Too young too remember

 

but seriously i was in the dominican republic where the lights go out regularly every day, multiple times a day

Its quite funny how the USA gets so freaked out over events like this when they are countries who live in poverty

[amused1]

On a boat with a friend. He got a cell call from a friend in another state asking if he had power. We had no idea until we reached shore. Sure enough, no power. We waited until dark to go home from the lake. When we got there we found all of our neighbors having a big BBQ to cook all the food and drink all the cold beer before the stuff spoiled.

[bigvalboy]

Here's one thing I never understood: Why did tourists staying in hotels, like these Renaissance guests, opt to sleep on the street? Sure, it was sweltering on the high floors, but would the street really be better?

http://graphics7.nytimes.com/images/2003/08/15/nyregion/15cnd_bo-hotel.jpg

 

Thankfully I was several thousand miles away, but I'm trying to imagine what a mess it all was. Most hotel windows don't open, so I would think the lack of any air circulation must have been unbearable, plus, I would imagine it would be a bit unnerving in a darkened hotel room all alone 20 floors above the street without any light. I think I would have opted for the street also. Just trying to imagine what I would have felt like in that situation.

 

 

Glad the Kitten was OK.

[+ FreshFluff]

Thankfully I was several thousand miles away, but I'm trying to imagine what a mess it all was. Most hotel windows don't open, so I would think the lack of any air circulation must have been unbearable, plus, I would imagine it would be a bit unnerving in a darkened hotel room all alone 20 floors above the street without any light. I think I would have opted for the street also. Just trying to imagine what I would have felt like in that situation.

 

Having been through the Northridge earthquake more than 20 years ago, and being forced outside for almost a week, completely unprepared, I have empathy.

 

Glad the Kitten was OK.

 

I have empathy. I just can't imagine why that would be more comfortable on the street than the room. I was in a 450 square foot studio apartment with a window that only opened 6 inches, but yeah, I guess it was still home.

 

Sorry you were forced to sleep outside after the earthquake. That would be awful.

[+ sniper]

I have empathy. I just can't imagine why that would be more comfortable on the street than the room. I was in a 450 square foot studio apartment with a window that only opened 6 inches, but yeah, I guess it was still home.

 

Sorry you were forced to sleep outside after the earthquake. That would be awful.

 

If the window can't open AT ALL, it might be like being an animal in a car on the higher floors and actually potentially fatal. Lots of hotels the windows are floor to ceiling. It was the summertime.

[rickp]

Yes I remember that day quite well! The Indigo girls were scheduled to perform at Summer stage in Central Park that evening. I had left my house around 4 o'clock, and I guess I didn't notice it right away since it was broad daylight. At first I thought just one subway station was closed, but then two, and then three, figuring out quickly that it was the whole city. I ended up walking the entire distance to the park. There were about 12 people gathered for the show, which was performed acoustically. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life!

[BaronArtz]

I was in a midtown building and we thought it was just a building blackout. When we found out it was bigger, one of the guards in the building said it was terrorism. Like everyone, I walked home. On the way, I saw a fluffy, overheated Samoyed lying on his side. His owner was putting cold water on his paws to cool him down.

 

I lived in an UES high rise. I had no flashlight and didn't want to risk using candles, so I went up and down 30 flights several times in total darkness.

 

We were one of the last areas to get our power back; it took almost 3 days. Watching everything--street lights, signs etc--come back to life was really something.

 

Here's one thing I never understood: Why did tourists staying in hotels, like these Renaissance guests, opt to sleep on the street? Sure, it was sweltering on the high floors, but would the street really be better?

http://graphics7.nytimes.com/images/2003/08/15/nyregion/15cnd_bo-hotel.jpg

 

That hotel is around the corner from my office address at the time. They were sleeping on the streets because the elevators didn't work, and - more importantly - because the electronic access key to their rooms was not functioning!

[+ sync]

The non-functioning electronic access key mechanisms is a factor that I never would have considered. I don't remember exactly where I was when the blackout occurred, but I must have been at home or able to get there because I was living and working in NYC at the time.

[BaronArtz]

Like FF, I was in a midtown NY office building. We also thought it was just a power outage in the building. Looking outside, we noticed that the traffic lights were out and people were filling the streets, so we knew it was something more serious. We walked down the emergency stairs, I remember how surprised I was that everybody appeared calm. No running down the stairs, no signs of panic.

 

I went over to Stella's bar, a local gay dive bar in the theatre district. The bar was open, and there were about 20-25 patrons. Bar tender Jimmy was most gracious, he pulled out emergency candles and let everybody drink for free. Obviously, credit card and ATM transactions could not be processed. It was quite a party. By 8 30 p.m., the ice was gone, most of the booze was gone and the candles started flickering. The bar closed and I walked up to my home in the West 80s. On the block, many people had pulled out barbeque sets and grilled food that was handed out to neighbors. We didn't know how long the black out would last, but it was a relief hearing that it was not the result of a terrorist attack. By noon the next day, power in my neighborhood was restored.

[+ FreshFluff]

That hotel is around the corner from my office address at the time. They were sleeping on the streets because the elevators didn't work, and - more importantly - because the electronic access key to their rooms was not functioning!

 

Yes, I was wondering about whether hotels then had electronic key cards! Sounds like a fun time at Stella's.