Northeast blackout of 1965
The northeast blackout of 1965 was a significant disruption in the supply of electricity on Tuesday, November 9, 1965, affecting parts of Ontario in Canada and Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont in the United States.
On a particularly cold November evening, power demands for heating, lighting, and cooking were pushing the electrical system to near its peak capacity.
[3] Within five minutes, the power distribution system in the Northeast was in chaos as the effects of overloads and the subsequent loss of generating capacity cascaded through the network, breaking the grid into "islands".
Ingram quipped that the King record "was in the key of R." The station's music playback equipment used synchronous motors whose speed was dependent on the frequency of the powerline, normally 60 Hz.
[5] As Si Zentner's recording of "(Up a) Lazy River" played in the background – again at a slower-than-normal tempo – Ingram mentioned that the lights in the studio were dimming, then suggested that the electricity itself was slowing down, adding, "I didn't know that could happen".
The lead story was still Roger Allen LaPorte's self-immolation at United Nations Headquarters earlier that day in protest of American military involvement in the Vietnam War; a taped sound bite with the attending physician played noticeably slower and lower than usual.
In New York City, Staten Island and parts of Brooklyn were spared[8] when Con Edison disconnected its Arthur Kill Generating Station from the grid.
From the first failure at 5:17 p.m. near the Niagara-Canada border, the blackout moved eastward across the state, and "at 5:27 p.m., the lights began sputtering in New York City, and within seconds... blacked out in Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, and most of Brooklyn."
Fortunately, a bright full moon lit up the cloudless sky over the entire blackout area,[9] providing some aid for the millions who were suddenly plunged into darkness.
The generator at Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse failed to start, creating a serious crisis and forcing surgeons to complete operations in progress by flashlight.
[10][11] The New York Times was able to produce a ten-page edition for November 10, using the printing presses of a nearby paper that was not affected, the Newark Evening News.
