I remember that blackout well. Was walking home from HS football practice when I noticed the lights were all out in the neighborhood. Right from the very start I recall how people exclaimed something was real strange, how it should never have happened the way it did.
I was only four when this occurred in Rochester but still have memories of all the power going out and my parents rummaging for candles and a flashlight. And since both my folks were smokers the scent of Zippo lighters and fluid is still something of a fond memory. This was back before all the various styles of plastic lighters. Back then they were all mainly made of metal and had a sponge insert for your fuel, a wick, and of course a small piece of flint. Ah, the good old days.
Didn't live in New York but remember the blackout well (was in middle school) because coverage of it just blanketed the news (even our local news in the Midwest).
The early news reports mentioned a fireball, but that disappeared from later reporting. Remember talking with the family about it and wondering if the fireball was from an explosion, since the reports never described what was meant by "fireball".
BTW the long exposure photos taken at the time of the Manhattan skyline at night with all the lights out were pretty awesome.
The one in 1965 was very widespread and very strange - for a while it was blamed on "somebody dropping a wrench" somewhere and it never should have spread so far. Interesting thing about that one was that people were very kind and helped each other out. The other one I experienced was a different story altogether. A more local blackout happened in July of 1977 from lightening strikes and New Yorkers went crazy with maybe the heat adding to the madness. Looting, murder and arson all night long.
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I remember that blackout well. Was walking home from HS football practice when I noticed the lights were all out in the neighborhood.
Right from the very start I recall how people exclaimed something was real strange, how it should never have happened the way it did.
I wasn't born yet then, but wasn't there a similar blackout like back in the 1990s?
I was only four when this occurred in Rochester but still have memories of all the power going out and my parents rummaging for candles and a flashlight. And since both my folks were smokers the scent of Zippo lighters and fluid is still something of a fond memory. This was back before all the various styles of plastic lighters. Back then they were all mainly made of metal and had a sponge insert for your fuel, a wick, and of course a small piece of flint. Ah, the good old days.
Didn't live in New York but remember the blackout well (was in middle school) because coverage of it just blanketed the news (even our local news in the Midwest).
The early news reports mentioned a fireball, but that disappeared from later reporting. Remember talking with the family about it and wondering if the fireball was from an explosion, since the reports never described what was meant by "fireball".
BTW the long exposure photos taken at the time of the Manhattan skyline at night with all the lights out were pretty awesome.
The one in 1965 was very widespread and very strange - for a while it was blamed on "somebody dropping a wrench" somewhere and it never should have spread so far. Interesting thing about that one was that people were very kind and helped each other out.
The other one I experienced was a different story altogether. A more local blackout happened in July of 1977 from lightening strikes and New Yorkers went crazy with maybe the heat adding to the madness. Looting, murder and arson all night long.
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