Northeast blackout of 2003

{{Short description|Power outage in North America}} {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2013}} {{Infobox event | title =  | image = Map of North America, blackout 2003.svg | image_size = 300px | image_upright = | image_alt = | caption = This image shows states and provinces that experienced [[power outage]]s. Not all areas within these political boundaries were affected. | native_name = | native_name_lang = | english_name = | time = | duration = 2 hours–4 days, depending on location | date = {{Start and end dates|2003|8|14|2003|8|16}} | venue = | location = [[Michigan]], [[Ohio]], [[Pennsylvania]], [[New Jersey]], [[New York (state)|New York]], [[Connecticut]], [[Massachusetts]], [[Ontario]] | coordinates =  | also_known_as = | type = [[Power outage|Blackout]] | theme = | cause = Failure of alarm system in [[FirstEnergy]] control room leading to cascading loss of transmission and generation capability. | motive = | target = | first_reporter = | budget = | patron =  | organisers =  | filmed_by = | participants = | outcome = 55 million people affected | casualties1 = | casualties2 = | casualties3 = | reported deaths = Almost 100 | reported injuries = | reported missing = | reported property damage = | burial = | inquiries = | inquest = | coroner = | arrests = | suspects = | accused = | convicted = | charges = | trial = | verdict = | convictions = | sentence = | publication_bans = | litigation = | awards = | url = | blank_label =  | blank1_label =  | blank2_label =  | website =  | notes = }}

The '''Northeast blackout of 2003''' was a widespread [[power outage]] throughout parts of the [[northeastern United States|Northeastern]] and [[Midwestern United States]], and most parts of the Canadian province of [[Ontario]] on Thursday, August 14, 2003, beginning just after 4:10 p.m. [[Eastern Daylight Time|EDT]].<ref name="Genscape">{{cite press release| url = http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/what-caused-the-power-blackout-to-spread-so-widely-and-so-fast-genscapes-unique-data-will-help-answer-that-question-70952022.html| title = What Caused the Power Blackout To Spread So Widely and So Fast?| access-date = July 13, 2011| date = August 15, 2003| publisher = Genscape| via = [[PR Newswire]]| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160518020430/http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/what-caused-the-power-blackout-to-spread-so-widely-and-so-fast-genscapes-unique-data-will-help-answer-that-question-70952022.html| archive-date = May 18, 2016| url-status = dead}}</ref>

Most places restored power by midnight (within 7 hours), some as early as 6 p.m. on August 14 (within 2 hours),<ref name="CNN" /> while the [[New York City Subway]] resumed limited services around 8 p.m.<ref name="CNN" /> Full power was restored to [[New York City]] and parts of [[Toronto]] on August 16.<ref name="DGA.Consulting">{{cite report|title=International Comparison Major Blackouts and Restoration|author=DGA Consulting|date=2016-05-05|pages=16–17|url=https://www.aemc.gov.au/sites/default/files/content/144f4579-f61f-41ea-803f-2048e2eb695d/DGA-Consulting-_International-comparison-of-major-blackouts-and-restorat.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180313063717/https://www.aemc.gov.au/sites/default/files/content/144f4579-f61f-41ea-803f-2048e2eb695d/DGA-Consulting-_International-comparison-of-major-blackouts-and-restorat.pdf|archive-date=2018-03-13}}</ref> At the time, it was the world's second [[List of major power outages#Largest|most widespread blackout in history]], after the [[1999 Southern Brazil blackout]].<ref name="CBC archived news clip">{{cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/2003-the-great-north-america-blackout |title=2003: The great North America blackout |work=[[CBC News]] |publisher=[[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] |date=August 14, 2003 |access-date=September 19, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150815104516/http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/2003-the-great-north-america-blackout |archive-date=August 15, 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=August 18, 2004|title=INDEPTH: Power Outage {{!}} Timeline|work=CBC News|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/poweroutage/timeline.html|url-status=dead|access-date=September 15, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203032628/http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/poweroutage/timeline.html|archive-date=February 3, 2013 }}</ref> The outage, which was much more widespread than the [[Northeast blackout of 1965]], affected an estimated 55 million people, including 10 million people in [[southern Ontario|southern]] and central Ontario and 45 million people in eight U.S. states.

The blackout was due to a [[software bug]] in the alarm system at the control room of [[FirstEnergy]], which rendered operators unaware of the need to redistribute load after overloaded transmission lines dropped in voltage. What should have been a manageable local blackout cascaded into the collapse of much of the Northeast regional electricity distribution system.

== Immediate impact == According to the New York Independent System Operator ([[NYISO]])—the [[Independent System Operator|ISO]], responsible for managing the [[New York (state)|New York]] state [[electrical grid|power grid]]—a 3,500 [[megawatt]] power surge (towards Ontario) affected the transmission grid at 4:10:39 p.m. EDT.<ref name="NYISO">{{cite web|date=January 8, 2004|title=Interim Report on the August 14, 2003, Blackout|url=http://www.hks.harvard.edu/hepg/Papers/NYISO.blackout.report.8.Jan.04.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080910221454/http://www.hks.harvard.edu/hepg/Papers/NYISO.blackout.report.8.Jan.04.pdf|archive-date=September 10, 2008|access-date=September 16, 2008|publisher=New York Independent System Operator}}</ref>

For the next 30 minutes, until 4:40 p.m. EDT, outages were reported in parts of [[Michigan]] ([[Detroit]]), [[Ohio]] ([[Cleveland]], [[Akron, Ohio|Akron]], [[Toledo, Ohio|Toledo]]), [[Ontario]] ([[Toronto]], [[Hamilton, Ontario|Hamilton]], [[London, Ontario|London]], [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]]), [[New Jersey]] ([[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]]), and [[New York (state)|New York]] ([[New York City]], [[Suffolk County, New York|Suffolk]], [[Nassau County, New York|Nassau]], [[Westchester County, New York|Westchester]], [[Orange County, New York|Orange]] and [[Rockland County, New York|Rockland]] counties, [[Rochester, New York|Rochester]], [[Syracuse, New York|Syracuse]], [[Binghamton, New York|Binghamton]], [[Albany, New York|Albany]]).

This was followed by outages in other areas initially unaffected, including all of New York City, portions of southern New York state, New Jersey, [[Vermont]], [[Connecticut]], as well as most of the province of [[Ontario]].<ref name="CNN">{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/08/14/power.outage/ |title=Major power outage hits New York, other large cities |website=[[CNN]] |publisher=[[Turner Broadcasting System]] |access-date=September 16, 2008 |date=August 14, 2003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080914184151/http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/08/14/power.outage/ |archive-date=September 14, 2008 |url-status=live }}</ref> Eventually, a large, somewhat triangular area bounded by [[Lansing, Michigan]], [[Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario]], the shore of [[James Bay]], [[Ottawa]], New York, and Toledo was left without power.

According to the official analysis of the blackout prepared by the US and Canadian governments, more than 508 generating units at 265 power plants shut down during the outage. In the minutes before the event, the NYISO-managed power system was carrying 28,700 MW of load. At the height of the outage, the load had dropped to 5,716 MW, a loss of 80%.<ref name="NYISO" />

Essential services remained in operation in some of these areas. In others, backup generation systems failed. Telephone networks generally remained operational, but the increased demand triggered by the blackout left some circuits overloaded. Water systems in several cities lost pressure, forcing [[boil-water advisory|boil-water advisories]] to be put into effect. [[Mobile phone|Cellular service]] was interrupted as mobile networks were overloaded with the increase in volume of calls.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Richtel|first1=Matt|last2=Romero|first2=Simon|date=2003-08-15|title=The Blackout of 2003: Communications; When Wireless Phones Failed Because of Heavy Use, Callers Turned to Land Lines|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/15/business/blackout-2003-communications-when-wireless-phones-failed-because-heavy-use.html|access-date=2022-01-03|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=January 3, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220103041541/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/15/business/blackout-2003-communications-when-wireless-phones-failed-because-heavy-use.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Multiple cell sites were out of commission due to power outages.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Wireless service performs poorly in big blackout – Aug. 16, 2003|url=https://money.cnn.com/2003/08/15/technology/landlines/index.htm|access-date=2022-01-03|website=money.cnn.com|archive-date=January 3, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220103041541/https://money.cnn.com/2003/08/15/technology/landlines/index.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> Television and radio stations remained on the air, with the help of [[Emergency power system|backup generators]], although some stations were knocked off the air for periods ranging from several hours to the length of the entire blackout.{{Vague|Which stations? "Some" and "Most" don't mean anything.|date=June 2010}}

High heat played a role in the initial event that triggered the wider power outage. Much of the affected region reached temperatures higher than {{convert|31|C|F|disp=b|}} that day, increasing energy demand as people across the region turned on fans and [[Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning|air conditioning]]. This caused the power lines to sag as higher currents heated the lines.

Most of the [[Amtrak]] [[Northeast Corridor]] service was interrupted, as it relied on electricity for its signaling and crossing systems; electrified commuter railways also shut down.<ref name="CNN" /> [[Via Rail]] in Canada was able to continue most of its service. All airports in the affected area closed immediately, there were no departures, and incoming flights had to be diverted to airports with power.

The reliability of the electrical grid was called into question and required substantial investment to repair its shortcomings.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=139–173}}

In areas where power remained off after nightfall, the [[Milky Way]] and orbiting artificial [[satellite]]s became visible to the naked eye in metropolitan areas where they cannot ordinarily be seen due to [[light pollution]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.illinoislighting.org/loss.html |title=The Costs Of Losing Our Night Skies |publisher=www.illinoislighting.org |date=August 14, 2003 |access-date=June 16, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120618013711/http://www.illinoislighting.org/loss.html |archive-date=June 18, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Duration== Most places restored power by midnight, as early as 6 p.m. on August 14,<ref name="CNN" /> and the [[New York City Subway]] had resumed limited services around 8 p.m.<ref name="CNN" /> Some areas lost power for only four to eight hours; these are: [[Albany, New York|Albany]] and parts of [[Long Island]] in New York; three‐quarters of [[New Jersey]]; parts of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan; [[New London County, Connecticut]]; parts of [[Downtown Toronto|downtown]] [[Toronto]], [[Mississauga]], and [[London, Ontario|London]] in Ontario; portions of western [[Ottawa]] in Ontario, including [[Kanata, Ontario|Kanata]] and south to [[Kingston, Ontario|Kingston]]; a number of areas of the [[Regional Municipality of Niagara]] in Ontario; and parts of [[Southwestern Ontario]], particularly areas near the [[Bruce Nuclear Generating Station]].<ref name="DGA.Consulting"/>

By the next morning (August 15), some areas of [[Manhattan]] regained power around 5:00 a.m.; [[Staten Island]] regained power around 3:00 a.m. Half of the affected portions of Ontario regained power by the morning. By early evening of August 15, two airports, [[Cleveland Hopkins International Airport]] and [[Toronto Pearson International Airport]], were back in service. By August 16, power was fully restored in New York and parts of Toronto.<ref name="DGA.Consulting"/> 500,000 [[Detroit Edison]] customers were still without power at 10:00pm August 15; all were restored by 6:30am August 16.<ref>{{cite report|author=Michigan Public Service Commission |date=November 2002 |title=Report on the August 14th Blackout |url=https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Project/Websites/mpsc/regulatory/reports/mpsc_blackout.pdf |website=State of Michigan |publisher=[[State of Michigan]] |access-date=June 13, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250225161006/https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Project/Websites/mpsc/regulatory/reports/mpsc_blackout.pdf |archive-date=February 25, 2025|url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Unaffected regions === Within the area affected, about 200,000 people continued to have power—in the [[Niagara Peninsula]] of Ontario; the easternmost corner of Ontario (centered on [[Cornwall, Ontario|Cornwall]]); northwestern Ontario (west of Wawa); and the [[Buffalo, New York]] area, excluding southern Erie county, along the shore of Lake Huron via a feeder line to [[Owen Sound]] from [[Bruce Nuclear Generating Station]]. Three of the four Bruce B units were able to throttle back their output without a complete shutdown, then reconnect to the grid within five hours: the portion of New York state including parts of Albany and north and west of Albany, a small pocket of mid-east Michigan, the [[Upper Peninsula of Michigan]], and small pockets in New Jersey. The unaffected area was protected by transmission circuit devices at the [[Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Generating Stations]] in [[Niagara Falls, Ontario|Niagara Falls]] (coincidentally, the starting point of the [[Northeast blackout of 1965]]) at a switching station of the hydroelectric power station in Cornwall, as well as central New York state. [[Philadelphia]] and the surrounding [[mid-Atlantic states|mid-Atlantic]] areas were also completely unaffected because [[PJM Interconnection|PJM]] disconnected them.<ref name="NYISO" /> The Saint Clair power plant in [[East China Township, Michigan]], remained online for about 36 hours, and residents were informed that the plant would have to shut down in order to facilitate the reboot of the whole system. [[Orrville, Ohio]], was able to restore power within an hour disconnecting the local utility from the larger grid and restarting the coal-fired generator.{{citation needed|date=October 2017}}

== Causes ==

=== Power grid management concepts === {{multiple issues|section=yes| {{unreferenced section|date=November 2021}} {{original research|section|date=November 2021}}}} The load on any power network must be immediately matched by its supply and its ability to transmit that power. Any [[overcurrent|overload]] of a power line or generator can cause costly damage, so the affected device is disconnected from the network if an overload is detected.

The [[electrical resistance and conductance|electrical resistance]] of a power line causes it to produce more heat as the [[electric current|current]] it carries increases. If this heat is not sufficiently dissipated, the metal conductor in the line will expand and lengthen, so that it sags between supporting structures. If the line sags too low, a [[electric arc|flash over]] to nearby objects (such as trees) may occur, causing a [[Transient (oscillation)|transient]] increase in current. Automatic [[protective relay]]s detect the excessively high current and quickly disconnect the line, so the load previously carried by the line is transferred to other lines. If the other lines do not have enough spare capacity to accommodate the extra current, their overload protection will react as well, causing a [[cascading failure]].

System operators are responsible for ensuring that power supply and loads remain balanced, and for keeping the system within safe operational limits such that no single fault can cause the system to fail. After a failure affecting their system, operators must obtain more power from generators or other regions or "shed load" (meaning to intentionally cut power to a given area, similar to a [[rolling blackout]]) until they can be sure that the worst remaining possible failure anywhere in the system will not cause a system collapse. In an emergency, they are expected to immediately shed load as required to bring the system into balance.

To assist the operators there are computer systems, with backups, which issue alarms when there are faults in the transmission or generation system. [[Power flow study|Power flow modeling tools]] let them analyze the state of their network, predict whether any parts of it may be overloaded, and predict the worst possible failure remaining, so that they can change the distribution of [[Electricity generation|generation]] or reconfigure the transmission system to prevent a failure should this situation occur. If the computer systems and their backups fail, the operators are required to monitor the grid manually, instead of relying on computer alerts. If they cannot interpret the state of the power grid in such an event, they follow a contingency plan, contacting other plant and grid operators by telephone if necessary. If there is a failure, they are also required to notify adjacent areas which may be affected, so those can predict the possible effects on their own systems.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Final Report on the August 13, 2003 Blackout in the United States and Canada: Causes and Recommendations |date=April 2004}}</ref>

=== Investigation efforts === A joint federal task force was formed by the governments of Canada and the U.S. to oversee the investigation and report directly to Ottawa and Washington. The task force was led by then-Canadian Natural Resource Minister [[Herb Dhaliwal]] and [[United States Secretary of Energy|U.S. Energy Secretary]] [[Spencer Abraham]].

In addition to determining the initial cause of the cascading failure, the investigation of the incident also included an examination of the failure of safeguards designed to prevent a repetition of the [[Northeast blackout of 1965]]. The [[North American Electric Reliability Corporation]], a joint Canada-U.S. council, is responsible for dealing with these issues.

On November 19, 2003, Abraham said his department would not seek to punish FirstEnergy Corp for its role in the blackout because current U.S. law does not require electric reliability standards. Abraham stated, "The absence of enforceable reliability standards creates a situation in which there are limits in terms of federal level punishment."<ref>{{cite web|date=November 19, 2003|title=DOE chief sees no blackout penalty for FirstEnergy|url=https://www.forbes.com/markets/newswire/2003/11/19/rtr1153863.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040224080845/http://www.forbes.com/markets/newswire/2003/11/19/rtr1153863.html|archive-date=February 24, 2004|access-date=March 31, 2012|publisher=Forbes, LLC|periodical=[[Forbes]]}}</ref>

=== Findings === In April 2004, the U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force released their final report, placing the causes of the blackout into four groups:{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|p=18}}

# [[FirstEnergy]] (FE) and its reliability council "failed to assess and understand the inadequacies of FE's system, particularly with respect to voltage instability and the vulnerability of the Cleveland-Akron area, and FE did not operate its system with appropriate voltage criteria." # FirstEnergy "did not recognize or understand the deteriorating condition of its system." # FirstEnergy "failed to manage adequately tree growth in its transmission rights-of-way." # Finally, the "failure of the interconnected grid's reliability organizations to provide effective real-time diagnostic support."

The report states that a generating plant in [[Eastlake, Ohio]], a suburb northeast of Cleveland, went offline amid high electrical demand, putting a strain on high-voltage power lines (located in Walton Hills, Ohio, a southeast suburb of Cleveland) which later went out of service when they came in contact with "overgrown trees". This trip caused load to transfer to other transmission lines, which were not able to bear the load, tripping their breakers. Once these multiple trips occurred, a number of generators suddenly lost parts of their loads, so they accelerated out of phase with the grid at different rates, and tripped out to prevent damage. The cascading effect that resulted ultimately forced the shutdown of at least 265 power plants.

==== Computer failure ==== A [[software bug]] known as a [[race condition]] existed in [[General Electric]] Energy's [[Unix]]-based XA/21 [[Energy management system (electrical grid)|energy management system]].<ref>{{cite web |title=XA/21™ EMS |url=https://www.gegridsolutions.com/products/brochures/uos/xa21_ems.pdf |website=General Electric Grid Solutions |access-date=26 March 2024 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240326124641/https://www.gegridsolutions.com/products/brochures/uos/xa21_ems.pdf |archive-date=26 March 2024}}</ref> Once triggered, the bug stalled FirstEnergy's control room alarm system for over an hour. System operators were unaware of the malfunction. The failure deprived them of both audio and visual alerts for important changes in system state.<ref>{{cite news |author=Kevin Poulsen |url=http://www.securityfocus.com/news/8016 |title=Software Bug Contributed to Blackout |publisher=Securityfocus.com |date=February 11, 2004 |access-date=April 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610224942/http://www.securityfocus.com/news/8016 |archive-date=June 10, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Kevin Poulsen |url=http://www.securityfocus.com/news/8412 |title=Tracking the blackout bug |publisher=Securityfocus.com |date=April 7, 2004 |access-date=April 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610163731/http://www.securityfocus.com/news/8412 |archive-date=June 10, 2011 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Unprocessed events queued up after the alarm system failure and the primary [[Application server|server]] failed within 30 minutes. Then all applications (including the stalled alarm system) were automatically transferred to the backup server, which itself failed at 14:54. The server failures slowed the screen refresh rate of the operators' computer consoles from 1–3 seconds to 59 seconds per screen. The lack of alarms led operators to dismiss a call from [[American Electric Power]] about the tripping and reclosure of a 345 kV shared line in northeast Ohio. But by 15:42, after the control room itself lost power, control room operators informed technical support (who were already troubleshooting the problem) of the alarm system problem.<ref>{{cite report|url=http://www.nerc.com/docs/docs/blackout/NERC_Final_Blackout_Report_07_13_04.pdf|title=Technical Analysis of the August 14, 2003, Blackout: What Happened, Why, and What Did We Learn?|date=July 13, 2004|publisher=[[North American Electric Reliability Council]]|access-date=June 16, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318081212/http://www.nerc.com/docs/docs/blackout/NERC_Final_Blackout_Report_07_13_04.pdf|archive-date=March 18, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Sequence of events ===

==== Outages in the Cleveland-Akron area ==== The cascading failure began in the FE-controlled Cleveland–Akron area; the area was significant because it was a "transmission-constrained load pocket with relatively limited generation."{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|p=24}} On August 14, a number of power generators in and around the area were offline. This reduced the available resources for [[voltage control and reactive power management]] in contingencies but did not affect normal operation. Four or five of the area's capacitor banks—also used to manage reactive power—were also offline for routine maintenance; this did not follow the best practice of performing such maintenance during low-demand periods, and their status was not reported for regional planning purposes because FE had deemed them to be non-critical infrastructure.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=25–27}}

Incidents contributing to the blackout began after noon on August 14. FE's reliability coordinator was the [[Midcontinent Independent System Operator|Midwest Independent System Operator]] (MISO).{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|p=14}} MISO maintained a regularly updated model of its area of responsibility with a [[state observer|state estimator]] (SE). At 12:15 p.m., the SE was mistakenly shutdown after producing anomalous results due to old data.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|p=14}} Unscheduled grid outages followed. In the Cleveland-Akron area, Eastlake Power Plant unit 5 went offline at 1:31 p.m. In Southern Ohio, [[DPL Inc.|Dayton Power and Light]]'s (DPL) Stuart-Atlanta transmission line tripped from tree contact at 2:02 p.m. The outages did not affect normal operation.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=27-28}} However, the loss of the Eastlake unit put the FE system at risk of overloads in certain contingency scenarios; FE did not notice the danger.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=49–50}} At the time of the Eastlake unit outage, FE was asking for and receiving significant additional voltage support, but the situation was not unprecedented.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=47–48}}

FE's situational awareness was reduced by the development of faults in its [[General Electric]] Harris XA21 [[Energy management system (electrical grid)|energy management system]] (EMS) from 2:14 p.m. to 2:54 p.m. The alarm and logging software in the control room failed first, followed by some remote terminals and data links, then the primary and backup EMS servers. Control room operators were unaware of the alarm failure for over an hour. Operators began to suspect a failure after receiving a notification from [[American Electric Power]] (AEP) at 2:32 p.m. about a short AEP line outage that the FE EMS had failed to raise an alert for. FE [[technical support|IT]] was automatically notified of the remote terminal and server failures. IT performed a "warm [[reboot]]" of the primary server at 3:08 p.m. but did not realize that the alarm function remained broken. The control room notified IT of the alarm problem at 3:42 p.m. A "cold reboot"—later discovered to be the vendor-recommended action—was rejected because the power system situation was precarious and operators were concerned about the greater loss of functionality during the reboot procedure. The servers were offline again at 3:46 p.m. to 3:59 p.m. as they were rebooted in another attempt to re-enable the alarms. FE failed to notify MISO of its degraded situational awareness.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=51–57}}

Cleveland-Akron area transmission lines began failing shortly after 3:00 p.m. Three 345 kV transmission lines failed between 3:05 p.m. to 3:42 p.m. due to tree contact. The first was the Harding-Chamberlin line. Most of the load from that line was transferred to the Hanna-Juniper line, which then failed at 3:32 p.m. PJM and AEP began mitigation efforts to prevent the Star-South Canton line connecting FE and AEP from overloading; they had incomplete data on the status of FE's system and underestimated the severity of the situation. The Star-South Canton line failed at 3:41 p.m. after its loading increased from 82% to 120% after the failure of the Hanna-Juniper line. The failures in the MISO SE and FE EMS prevented either from recognizing and responding to the failures.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=57–64}} FE observed the loss of voltage after 3:32 p.m, but it was not until 3:45 p.m. that it recognized an emergency was occurring.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=66–67}} Next, the 138 kV lines failed between 3:39 p.m. to 4:08 p.m. The loss of voltage shut down industrial equipment used by customers and blacked out Akron and its surroundings.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|p=68}}

The MISO SE was reactivated at 2:40 p.m, but the results confused operators because the model did not match empirical data. The discrepancy was caused by the SE being unaware of the DPL line outage at 2:02 p.m;{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=48–49}} DPL's reliability coordinator was [[PJM Interconnection|PJM]],{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|p=14}} so DPL did not automatically report data to MISO. MISO operators had the SE modelling correctly again by 4:04 p.m. It was too late for MISO to address FE's critical status; the [[cascading failure]] started minutes later.{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=48–49}}

==== Cascade ====

==== Timeline ==== The following is the blackout's sequence of events on August 14, 2003{{sfn|U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force|2004|pp=46-48}}<ref>{{cite news|last=Lerner|first=Eric J.|date=October–November 2003|title=What's wrong with the electric grid?|work=The Industrial Physicist|publisher=[[American Institute of Physics]]|url=http://www.tipmagazine.com/tip/INPHFA/vol-9/iss-5/p8.html|url-status=dead|access-date=June 10, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716111817/http://www.tipmagazine.com/tip/INPHFA/vol-9/iss-5/p8.html|archive-date=July 16, 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=|date=August 16, 2003|title=A timeline of the 2003 blackout|website=CNN|publisher=Turner Broadcasting System|agency=[[Associated Press]]|url=http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/08/16/blackout.chron.ap/index.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013125714/http://edition.cnn.com/2003/US/08/16/blackout.chron.ap/index.html|archive-date=October 13, 2008}}</ref> (times in [[Eastern Time Zone|EDT]]): * 12:15 p.m. Incorrect [[telemetry]] data renders inoperative the state estimator, a power flow monitoring tool operated by the Indiana-based [[Midcontinent Independent System Operator|Midwest Independent Transmission System Operator]] (MISO). An operator corrects the telemetry problem, but forgets to restart the monitoring tool. * 1:31 p.m. The [[Eastlake, Ohio]] generating plant shuts down. The plant is owned by [[FirstEnergy]], an [[Akron, Ohio]]-based company. * 2:02 p.m. The first of several 345 [[kilovolt|kV]] [[Overhead power line|overhead transmission lines]] in northeast Ohio fails due to contact with a tree in [[Walton Hills, Ohio]].<ref>{{cite news |first=John P. |last=Coyne |url=http://www.cleveland.com/blackout/index.ssf?/blackout/more/1061717873203660.html |title=Boom signaled power-line arc in Walton Hills |newspaper=[[The Plain Dealer]] |publisher=[[Advance Publications]]|date=August 24, 2003 |access-date=August 30, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217151746/http://www.cleveland.com/blackout/index.ssf?%2Fblackout%2Fmore%2F1061717873203660.html |archive-date=December 17, 2007 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref>{{coord|41|21|22|N|81|34|10|W}}{{Citation needed|date=August 2011}} * 2:14 p.m. An alarm system fails at FirstEnergy's control room and is not repaired. * 3:05 p.m. A 345 kV transmission line known as the Chamberlin-Harding line sags into a tree and trips in [[Parma, Ohio|Parma]], south of Cleveland. * 3:17 p.m. [[Brownout (electricity)|Voltage dips temporarily]] on the Ohio portion of the grid. Controllers take no action. * 3:32 p.m. Power shifted by the first failure onto another 345 kV power line, the Hanna-Juniper interconnection, causes it to sag into a tree, bringing it offline as well. While MISO and FirstEnergy controllers concentrate on understanding the failures, they fail to inform system controllers in nearby states. * 3:39 p.m. A FirstEnergy 138 kV line trips in northern Ohio.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://eioc.pnl.gov/research/2003blackout.stm| title=Looking back at the 2003 blackout| publisher=[[Pacific Northwest National Laboratory]]| access-date=February 23, 2010| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091128093013/http://eioc.pnl.gov/research/2003blackout.stm| archive-date=November 28, 2009| url-status=live}}</ref> * 3:41 p.m. A [[circuit breaker]] connecting FirstEnergy's grid with that of [[American Electric Power]] is [[Circuit breaker|tripped]] as a 345 kV power line (Star-South Canton interconnection) and fifteen 138 kV lines fail in rapid succession in northern Ohio. * 3:46 p.m. A fifth 345 kV line, the Tidd-Canton Central line, trips offline. * 4:05:57 p.m. The Sammis-Star 345 kV line trips due to under-voltage and over-current interpreted as a short circuit. (Later analysis suggests that the blackout could have been averted before this failure by cutting 1.5 GW of load in the Cleveland–Akron area.) * 4:06–4:08 p.m. A sustained power surge north toward Cleveland overloads three 138 kV lines. * 4:09:02 p.m. Voltage sags deeply as Ohio draws 2 [[gigawatt|GW]] of power from Michigan, creating simultaneous under-voltage and over-current conditions as power attempts to flow in such a way as to rebalance the system's voltage. * 4:10:34 p.m. Multiple transmission lines trip out, first in Michigan and then in Ohio, blocking the eastward flow of power around the south shore of [[Lake Erie]] from [[Toledo, Ohio]], east through [[Erie, Pennsylvania]], and into southern Erie county, but not most of the [[Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area|Buffalo metropolitan area]]. Suddenly bereft of demand, generating stations go offline, creating a huge power deficit. In seconds, power surges in from the east, overloading east-coast power plants whose generators go offline as a protective measure, and the blackout is on. * 4:10:37 p.m. The eastern and western Michigan power grids disconnect from each other. Two 345 kV lines in [[Michigan]] trip. A line that runs from [[Grand Ledge, Michigan|Grand Ledge]] to [[Ann Arbor, Michigan|Ann Arbor]] known as the Oneida-Majestic interconnection trips. A short time later, a line running from [[Bay City, Michigan|Bay City]] south to [[Flint, Michigan|Flint]] in [[Consumers Energy]]'s system known as the Hampton-Thetford line also trips. * 4:10:38 p.m. Cleveland separates from the Pennsylvania grid. * 4:10:39 p.m. 3.7 GW power flows from the east along the north shore of Lake Erie, through Ontario to southern Michigan and northern Ohio, a flow more than ten times greater than the condition 30 seconds earlier, causing a voltage drop across the system. * 4:10:40 p.m. Flow flips to 2 GW eastward from Michigan through Ontario (a net reversal of 5.7 GW of power), then reverses back westward again within a half second. * 4:10:43 p.m. International connections between the United States and Canada start to fail. * 4:10:45 p.m. Northwestern Ontario separates from the east when the Wawa-Marathon 230 kV line north of [[Lake Superior]] disconnects. The first Ontario power plants go offline in response to the unstable voltage and current demand on the system. * 4:10:46 p.m. The [[New England]] grid separates from New York, to stop the black out from entering New England. * 4:10:50 p.m. Ontario separates from the western New York grid. * 4:11:57 p.m. The Keith-Waterman, Bunce Creek-Scott 230 kV lines and the [[St. Clair, Michigan|St. Clair]]–[[Lambton County|Lambton]] #1 230 kV line and #2 345 kV line between Michigan and Ontario fail. * 4:12:03 p.m. [[Windsor, Ontario]], and surrounding areas drop off the grid. * 4:12:58 p.m. Northern [[New Jersey]] separates its power-grids from [[New York City|New York]] and the [[Philadelphia]] area, causing a cascade of failing secondary generator plants along the New Jersey coast and throughout the inland regions west. * 4:13 p.m. End of [[cascading failure]]. 256 power plants are off-line, 85% of which went offline after the grid separations occurred, most due to the action of automatic protective controls.

== Effects == {{more citations needed section|date=November 2021}} {| class="wikitable" |+ Major cities affected |- ! City ! Number of people affected{{citation needed|date=November 2021}} |- | [[New York City]] and surrounding areas || 14,300,000 |- | [[Toronto]] [[Greater Toronto Area|metropolitan area]] and [[Golden Horseshoe|surrounding areas]] || 8,300,000 |- | [[Newark, New Jersey]], and surrounding areas || 6,980,000 |- | [[Detroit]] and surrounding areas || 6,400,000 |- | [[Cleveland]] and [[Greater Cleveland|surrounding areas]] || 2,900,000 |- | [[Ottawa]] || 780,000 of 1,120,000* |- | [[Buffalo, New York]], and surrounding areas | 1,100,000 |- | [[Rochester, New York]] || 1,050,000 |- | [[London, Ontario]], and surrounding areas|| 475,000 |- | [[Regional Municipality of Waterloo|Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo]], and surrounding areas|| 415,000 |- | [[Toledo, Ohio]] || 310,000 |- | [[Windsor, Ontario]] || 208,000 |- | Estimated total<ref>{{cite news|title=CBC News Indepth: Power outage|website=CBC News|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/poweroutage/numbers.html|url-status=dead|access-date=April 21, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100812125832/http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/poweroutage/numbers.html|archive-date=August 12, 2010}}</ref> | 55,000,000 |}

<nowiki>*</nowiki><small>[[National Capital Region (Canada)|Ottawa-Gatineau]] is a special case in that it is divided by a provincial boundary and the [[Ontario]] and [[Quebec]] grids are not synchronously connected. This resulted in [[Gatineau]] having power while [[Ottawa]] did not. Locals may have witnessed the drastic cutoff when they were crossing the [[Portage Bridge]] which links the capital region (street lights on the bridge were still lit on the Quebec side of the structure).</small>

=== Affected infrastructure ===

==== Power generation ==== {{unreferenced section|date=November 2021}} With the power fluctuations on the grid, power plants automatically went into "safe mode" to prevent damage in the case of an overload. This put much of the nuclear power offline until those plants could be slowly taken out of "safe mode". In the meantime, all available hydro-electric plants (as well as a number of coal- and oil-fired plants) were brought online, bringing some electrical power to the areas immediately surrounding the plants by the morning of August 15. Homes and businesses both in the affected area and in nearby areas were requested to limit power usage until the grid was back to full power.

==== Water supply ==== {{unreferenced section|date=November 2021}} Some areas lost water pressure because pumps lacked power. This loss of pressure caused potential contamination of the water supply. Four million customers of the Detroit water system in eight counties were under a [[boil-water advisory]] until August 18, four days after the initial outage. One county, [[Macomb County, Michigan|Macomb]], ordered all 2,300 restaurants closed until they were decontaminated after the advisory was lifted. Twenty people living on the [[St. Clair River]] claim to have been sickened after bathing in the river during the blackout. The accidental release of 140 kg (310 lb) of [[vinyl chloride]] from a [[Sarnia]], Ontario chemical plant was not revealed until five days later. Cleveland also lost water pressure and instituted a boil water advisory. Cleveland and New York had [[sewage]] spills into waterways, requiring beach closures. [[Newark, New Jersey]], and northern cities had major sewage spills into the [[Passaic River|Passaic]] and [[Hackensack River|Hackensack]] rivers, which flow directly to the Atlantic Ocean. [[Kingston, Ontario]] lost power to sewage pumps, causing raw waste to be dumped into the [[Cataraqui River]] at the base of the [[Rideau Canal]].

==== Transportation ==== {{more citations needed section|date=November 2021}} [[File:Streetcar Toronto 2003 Blackout.jpg|thumb|A streetcar left stranded by the blackout in [[Toronto]]]] [[Amtrak]]'s [[Northeast Corridor]] railroad service was stopped north of [[Philadelphia]], and all trains running into and out of New York City were shut down, initially including the [[Long Island Rail Road]] and the [[Metro-North Railroad]]; both were able to establish a bare-bones "all-diesel" service by the next morning. Canada's [[Via Rail]], which serves Toronto and [[Montreal]], had a few service delays before returning to normal the next morning.

Passenger screenings at affected airports ceased. Regional airports were shut down for this reason. In New York, flights were cancelled even after power had been restored to the airports because of difficulties accessing "electronic-ticket" information. [[Air Canada]] flights remained grounded on the morning of August 15 due to reliable power not having been restored to its [[Mississauga]] control center. It expected to resume operations by midday. This problem affected all Air Canada service and canceled the most heavily traveled flights to [[Metropolitan Halifax|Halifax]] and [[Vancouver]]. At [[Chicago]]'s [[Chicago Midway International Airport|Midway International Airport]], [[Southwest Airlines]] employees spent 48 hours dealing with the disorder caused by the blackout's sudden incidence.<ref>{{cite episode |network=[[A&E (TV channel)|A&E]] |series=Airline |series-link=Airline_(American_TV_series) |title=Beyond Their Control |date=January 12, 2004 |season=1}} features Southwest employees dealing with the flight interruptions caused by the blackout</ref>

Many gas stations were unable to pump fuel due to lack of electricity. In [[North Bay, Ontario]], for instance, a long line of [[transport truck]]s was held up, unable to go further west to [[Manitoba]] without refueling. In some cities, traffic problems were compounded by motorists who simply drove until their cars ran out of gas on the highway. Gas stations operating in pockets of [[Burlington, Ontario]], that had power were reported to be charging prices up to $3.78 per US gallon (99.9 ¢/Litre) when the going rate prior to the blackout was lower than $2.65/gallon (70¢/L). Customers still lined up for hours to pay prices many people considered [[price gouging]]. Station operators claimed that they had a limited supply of gasoline and did not know when their tanks would be refilled, prompting the drastic price increases.

Many oil refineries on the East Coast of the United States shut down as a result of the blackout, and were slow to resume gasoline production. As a result, gasoline prices were expected to rise approximately 10 cents/gallon (3¢/L) in the United States. In Canada, gasoline [[rationing]] was also considered by the authorities.

==== Communication ==== {{more citations needed section|date=November 2021}} Cellular communication devices were disrupted. This was mainly due to the loss of backup power at the cellular sites where generators ran out of fuel. Where cell sites remained up, some cell phones still went out of service as their batteries ran out of charge without a power source to recharge from. Wired [[telephone line]]s continued to work, although some systems were overwhelmed by the volume of traffic, and millions of home users had only cordless telephones depending on house current. Most New York and multiple Ontario radio stations were momentarily knocked off the air before returning with backup power.

[[Cable television]] systems were disabled, and in areas that had power restored (and had power to their television sets), cable subscribers could not receive information until power was restored to the cable provider. Those who relied on the [[Internet]] were similarly disconnected from their news source for the duration of the blackout, with the exception of [[dial-up]] access from [[laptop]] computers, which were widely reported to work until the batteries ran out of charge. Information was available by over-the-air TV and radio reception for those who were equipped to receive TV and/or audio in that way.

The blackout affected communications well outside the immediate area of power outage. The New Jersey–based internet operations of [[Advance Publications]] were among those knocked out by the blackout. As a result, the internet editions of Advance newspapers as far removed from the blackout area as ''[[The Birmingham News]]'', the New Orleans ''[[Times-Picayune]]'', and ''[[The Oregonian]]'' were offline for days.<ref>{{cite news|title=Blackout Stops Presses, Shuts Web Sites|url=https://www.thefreelibrary.com/BLACKOUT+STOPS+PRESSES%2c+SHUTS+WEB+SITES.-a0108017766|periodical=Newsinc|publisher=The Cole Group|date=August 18, 2003|via=[[TheFreeLibrary]]}}</ref>

[[Amateur radio]] operators passed emergency communications during the blackout.<ref>{{cite magazine|date=October 2003| author=Rick Lindquist| magazine=[[QST]]| title=Hams a Bright Spot during Power Blackout}}</ref>

==== Industry ==== {{unreferenced section|date=November 2021}} Large numbers of factories were closed in the affected area, and others outside the area were forced to close or slow work because of supply problems and the need to conserve energy while the grid was being stabilized. At one point a 7-hour wait developed for trucks crossing the [[Ambassador Bridge]] between [[Detroit]] and [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]] due to the lack of electronic border check systems. Freeway congestion in affected areas affected the "[[Just in time (business)|just in time]]" (JIT) supply system. Some industries (including the auto industry) did not return to full production until August 22.

=== By region === {{more citations needed section|date=November 2021}}

==== New York ==== {{for|delayed effects at [[Niagara Falls]]|#Ontario}} {{unreferenced section|date=July 2012}} [[File:2003 New York City blackout.jpg|thumb|250px|People walking across the [[Queensboro Bridge]] in [[New York City]] during the blackout]]

Almost the entirety of the [[New York (state)|State of New York]] lost power. Exceptions included [[Freeport, New York|Freeport]] and [[Rockville Centre, New York|Rockville Centre]] on [[Long Island]], which relied on localized power plants; the [[Capital District, New York|Capital District]], where power dipped briefly (a few areas, such as portions of [[Latham, New York]], did not lose power at all); the southernmost areas of the [[Southern Tier]] of [[Upstate New York]], mostly near [[Waverly, Tioga County, New York|Waverly]], which relied on power from [[Pennsylvania]]; the city of [[Plattsburgh (city), New York|Plattsburgh]]; [[Starrett City, Brooklyn]], which has auxiliary power; most of the city of [[Buffalo, New York|Buffalo]]; and pockets of [[Amherst, New York|Amherst]] in the Buffalo area, running off [[University at Buffalo, The State University of New York|university power]]. There were also some small pockets of power in the suburbs of [[Rochester, New York|Rochester]], as a few smaller power companies operating in those areas were able to keep running. The [[North Shore Towers]] complex was unaffected by the blackout due to their on-site self-generating power plant. Power was also available at the [[Kodak Park]] facility and its surrounding neighborhood in the city. Power was lost at the [[Oak Hill Country Club]] in nearby [[Pittsford, New York|Pittsford]], where the [[2003 PGA Championship]] was being played, which caused minor interruptions to the tournament. Also, that evening's [[Major League Baseball]] game between the [[New York Mets]] and the [[San Francisco Giants]] at [[Shea Stadium]] was postponed. In New York, all prisons were blacked out and switched to generator power. The two [[Indian Point Energy Center|Indian Point nuclear reactors]] on the [[Hudson River]] near [[Peekskill, New York|Peekskill]], the two reactors at [[Nine Mile Point Nuclear Generating Station|Nine Mile Point]] nuclear plant, the single reactor at [[Ginna Nuclear Generating Station|Ginna]] nuclear plant near Rochester, and the [[James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant|FitzPatrick]] reactor near [[Oswego, New York|Oswego]] all shut down. With three other nuclear plants shut down in Ohio, Michigan, and New Jersey, a total of nine reactors were affected. The governor of New York, [[George Pataki]], declared a [[state of emergency]].

[[Verizon Communications|Verizon]]'s emergency generators failed several times, leaving the [[emergency services number]] [[9-1-1]] out of service for several periods of about a quarter-hour each. New York City's [[3-1-1]] information hotline received over 175,000 calls from concerned residents during the weekend. [[Amateur radio operator]]s attached to New York City [[Amateur Radio Emergency Service|ARES]] provided a backup communications link to emergency shelters and hospitals. Amateur radio [[repeater]]s were supplied with emergency power via [[electric generator|generators]] and batteries and remained functional.

Major U.S. networks ([[CBS]], [[NBC]], [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] and [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]]) and some cable television channels ([[HBO]], [[MTV]] and [[Nickelodeon]]), centered in [[New York City]], were unable to broadcast normally, so backup stations and flagship transmitters in [[Dallas]] were used for prime-time TV. ABC ran their [[ABC News (United States)|news broadcasts]] from [[Washington, D.C.]] instead.

===== New York City ===== Much of [[Manhattan]], including the [[headquarters of the United Nations]], was rendered without power, as were all area airports (with the exception of [[Newburgh, New York|Newburgh's]] [[Stewart International Airport]], which had once been a military airbase and had its own generators). All New York-area rail transportation including the [[New York City Subway|subway]], the [[Port Authority Trans-Hudson|PATH]] lines between Manhattan and New Jersey, [[NJ Transit Rail Operations]], [[Metro-North Railroad|Metro-North]], and the [[Long Island Rail Road]], were without power. Limited railroad service resumed early Friday morning through the use of diesel trains.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/4349/dot_4349_DS1.pdf|title=Effects of Catastrophic Events on Transportation Systems Management and Operations – August 2003 Blackout Great Lakes Region|last=Volpe|first=John|date=May 2004|website=U.S. Department of Transportation – National Transportation Library|publisher=United States Department of Transportation – Research and Special Programs Administration|page=46|access-date=July 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190725033046/https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/4349/dot_4349_DS1.pdf|archive-date=July 25, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

More than 600 subway and commuter rail cars were trapped between stations. New York's [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority]] (which operates the subway) and the [[Port Authority of New York and New Jersey]] (which operates the PATH lines) reported that all passengers were evacuated without serious injury. PATH resumed service on the [[Uptown Hudson Tubes]] by 9:45 p.m. that evening; system-wide service resumed at 11 p.m.<ref name=":0" /> By comparison, full service on the New York City Subway system returned gradually from Friday through Saturday morning.<ref name=":0" />

Without traffic lights, [[gridlock]] was reported as people in Lower and [[Midtown Manhattan]] fled their offices on foot. For hours into the evening, the streets, highways, bridges and tunnels were jammed with traffic and pedestrians leaving Manhattan. A number of civilians helped direct traffic. The normally four-hour bus journey from Manhattan to [[Washington, D.C.]] took more than eight hours. According to reports, it took four hours just to get out of Manhattan.

Hundreds of people found themselves trapped in elevators at the start of the blackout, requiring urgent response from the FDNY. By late evening, the [[New York City Fire Department]] had reportedly confirmed that all stalled elevators in approximately 800 Manhattan high-rise office and apartment buildings had been cleared.

Mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]] advised residents to open their windows, drink plenty of liquids to avoid [[heat stroke]], and not to forget their pets. Temperatures were {{convert|92|F}} with high [[humidity]], as New York had just experienced a record-breaking rain spell that had started at the end of July. With cell phone operation mostly stalled by circuit overloads, New Yorkers were lining up 10 deep or more at [[pay phone]]s as [[Public switched telephone network|ordinary telephone service]] remained largely unaffected. A number of people found themselves with no phone service at home.

While some commuters were able to find alternate sleeping arrangements, a number of people were left stranded in New York and slept in parks and on the steps of public buildings. While practically all businesses and retail establishments closed down, multiple bars and pubs reported a brisk business as New Yorkers took the opportunity to spend the evening "enjoying" the blackout. Tourists' hotel rooms were blacked out, except the hallways, and most of the restaurants in lobbies gave out free food to guests. Since most perishable items were going to spoil anyway, restaurants and citizens simply prepared what they could and served it to anyone who wanted it, leading to vast block parties in multiple New York City neighborhoods. Any ice cream in frozen storage also had to be quickly served to any and all passers by.

The [[Indigo Girls]] were scheduled to perform that evening at [[Central Park SummerStage]], and the band took the stage as planned to play one of the only shows in the affected area, using generators that had been filled with fuel that morning. Their performance was not a full-length concert, as they needed to end early to allow all attendees to exit Central Park before dark. The venue also had bathrooms, and vendors cooking food on propane grills.

Forty thousand police officers and the entire fire department were called in to maintain order. At least two fatalities were linked to the use of flames to provide light, and a number of non-fatal fires also resulted from the use of [[candle]]s. New York City's [[New York City Office of Emergency Management|Office of Emergency Management]] activated its Emergency Operations Center, from which more than 70 agencies coordinated response efforts, which included delivery of portable light towers to unlit intersections, generators and diesel fuel to hospitals, and a portable steam generator necessary to power air conditioning units at the [[American Stock Exchange]].

==== New Jersey ==== Affected areas included most of [[Hudson County, New Jersey|Hudson]], [[Morris County, New Jersey|Morris]], [[Essex County, New Jersey|Essex]], [[Union County, New Jersey|Union]], [[Passaic County, New Jersey|Passaic]], and [[Bergen County, New Jersey|Bergen]] counties, including the major cities of [[Newark, New Jersey|Newark]], [[Jersey City]] and [[Paterson, New Jersey|Paterson]], although some sections of Newark and [[East Orange, New Jersey|East Orange]] still had power. Small sections of certain towns in Essex, Hudson, and Union counties had power.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nj.com/business/2013/08/a_decade_after_the_big_blackou.html|title=A decade after historic blackout, N.J. utilities focus on strengthening the system|newspaper=The Star Ledger|date=August 11, 2013|access-date=October 2, 2025}}</ref>

Power was returned first to the urban areas because of concerns of safety and unrest. Counties as far south as [[Cumberland County, New Jersey|Cumberland]] were affected, where power was restored within an hour. Some towns in Bergen County only momentarily lost power, and had wild oscillations in power line voltage, ranging from about 90 V to 135 V every few minutes for an hour.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nerc.com/pa/rrm/ea/Documents/August_2003_Blackout_Final_Report.pdf|title=Final Report on the August 14, 2003 Blackout in the United States and Canada: Causes and Recommendations|date=April 2004|access-date=October 2, 2025}}</ref>

The day following the blackout, August 15, the [[New Jersey Turnpike]] stopped collecting tolls until 9:00 a.m.

==== Connecticut ==== Parts of [[New London County, Connecticut|New London]], [[Hartford County, Connecticut|Hartford]], [[New Haven County, Connecticut|New Haven]], [[Litchfield County, Connecticut|Litchfield]], and [[Fairfield County, Connecticut|Fairfield]] counties, from [[Greenwich, Connecticut|Greenwich]] to [[Danbury, Connecticut|Danbury]] and [[Bridgeport, Connecticut|Bridgeport]] were affected, although most of the state had power all evening, aside from a few momentary interruptions that caused computers to reboot. [[Metro-North]] trains stopped and remained on the tracks for hours, until they could be towed to the nearest station. Generally, most of the state east of [[Interstate 91]], and some places west of I-91, had power during the duration of the blackout, with some of [[New Haven]]'s eastern suburbs being seen as the easternmost extreme of the effects of the blackout.

A local controversy ensued in the days after the blackout, when the federal government ordered power companies to energize the [[HVDC]] [[Cross Sound Cable]] between New Haven and [[Long Island]]. This cable had been installed, but not activated due to environment and fishery concerns. The [[State Attorney General|Attorney General]] of Connecticut (and future U.S. Senator), [[Richard Blumenthal]], and the [[Governor of New York]], [[George Pataki]], traded insults over the cable. Connecticut politicians, without regard for public safety, expressed their outrage that the cable was being turned on, since it did not help anyone in Connecticut, as the cable would transport power from Connecticut to Long Island.

==== Massachusetts ==== A small area of western [[Massachusetts]] was affected. In [[Worcester, Massachusetts|Worcester]] the event was of sufficient magnitude to reboot some computers, while in [[Springfield, Massachusetts|Springfield]] the effect of the event was enough to cause the automatic startup of commercial and industrial backup generation facilities. Some areas were subjected to lower-than-normal voltage (as low as 100 volts AC) and [[brownout (electricity)|brownouts]] for periods of up to 24 hours. The [[Boston]] area was spared from the blackout.

==== Michigan ==== About 2.3 million households and businesses were affected, including almost all of [[Metro Detroit]], [[Lansing, Michigan|Lansing]], [[Ann Arbor, Michigan|Ann Arbor]], and surrounding communities in southeast Michigan. The blackout affected three Michigan utilities: [[Detroit Edison]] (whose entire system went down), [[Lansing Board of Water & Light]], and a small portion of [[Consumers Energy]]'s system in the southeastern corner of the state.

Word quickly spread to the surrounding areas without power and people flocked to surrounding areas that still had power, resulting in crowded stores, packed restaurants, booked hotels, and long queues for the gas stations in these towns. Locales closest to the affected areas in the northern [[Metro Detroit|Detroit suburbs]] that did not lose power included the areas of [[Oxford, Michigan|Oxford]] and [[Holly, Michigan|Holly]], communities along [[M-24 (Michigan highway)|M-24]] and [[M-15 (Michigan highway)|M-15]], and into the [[Lapeer, Michigan|Lapeer]] and [[Flint/Tri-Cities]] area.{{Citation needed|date=June 2008}} The city limits of [[Brighton, Michigan|Brighton]] and [[Howell, Michigan|Howell]] were unaffected as well, as they received electricity from Consumers Energy via the Genoa-Latson 138 kV line which interconnects Detroit Edison and Consumers Energy.

Television and radio stations were temporarily knocked off the air and water supplies were disrupted in Detroit due to the failure of electric pumps. Because of the loss of water pressure, all water was required to be boiled before use until August 18. Several schools, which had planned to begin the school year August 18, were closed until clean water was available. A planned August 15 concert at [[Comerica Park]] featuring [[Kiss (band)|Kiss]] and [[Aerosmith]] was postponed until September 7.<ref>{{Cite web |title=KISS and Aerosmith at Comerica Park – MusicBrainz |url=https://musicbrainz.org/event/991fd43e-127b-4fa7-8e3a-1e30ec5bd920 |access-date=2024-11-08 |website=musicbrainz.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://wcsx.com/2024/08/02/blackout-of-2003/ | title=The Blackout of 2003 That Cancelled Aerosmith and Kiss at Comerica Park | date=August 2, 2024 }}</ref>

A [[Marathon Oil]] refinery in [[Melvindale, Michigan|Melvindale]], near Detroit, suffered a small explosion from gas buildup, necessitating an evacuation within {{convert|1|mi|spell=in}} around the plant and the closure of [[Interstate 75 in Michigan|Interstate 75]].

Officials feared the release of toxic gases. Heavy rains on August 17, coupled with the lack of sewage pumps, closed other expressways and prompted urban flood warnings. Untreated sewage flowed into local rivers in Lansing and Metropolitan Detroit as contingency solutions at some sewage treatment plants failed.

In the midst of a summer [[heat wave]], [[Michigander]]s were deprived of [[air conditioning]]. Several people, mostly elderly individuals, had to be treated for symptoms of [[heat stroke]].

In the Detroit area, local television stations' news helicopters were told by each station's management to "stay above the cars' headlights" at night, and to not venture into Downtown Detroit (due to the hazard of flying into an unlit [[skyscraper]]). During the days immediately after the blackout, a number of TV stations were back on the air, with limited resources. In one case, [[WXYZ-TV]]'s news anchor was wearing a T-shirt and shorts, as opposed to his normal news suit, and apologized to viewers for the "rather warm conditions" in the station, as they only had one air conditioner and a couple of fans working.

The [[Downriver]] communities had to contend with basements flooded with sewage-laden water on the weekend immediately after the blackout due to water and sewage pumps offline from a lack of power, much to the general annoyance of residents in the areas. News crews of the areas broadcast notices during their coverages of the blackouts to the Downriver residents, explaining why the pumps had shorted out, as well as to limit water usage. "Most places have water pressure, some have low pressure...some have none, and some even have ''negative pressure''. That means in the next few hours, people in the downriver communities should expect flooded basements from, so move all your valuables high up and out of the basements," as [[WDIV-TV]] warned.

[[West Michigan]], including the communities of [[Grand Rapids, Michigan|Grand Rapids]], [[Muskegon, Michigan|Muskegon]], and [[Holland, Michigan|Holland]] were mostly unaffected, although a large portion was within "seconds" of joining the blackout according to local U.S. Representative [[Fred Upton]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Dennis|last=Cogswell|title=Area was seconds away from blackout|url=http://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/area-was-seconds-away-from-blackout/article_513f5764-3e16-5ea9-b126-8c953f8ca859.html|newspaper=[[The Herald-Palladium]]|publisher=[[Paxton Media Group]]|date=August 26, 2003|access-date=May 6, 2016|archive-date=April 15, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415042044/https://www.heraldpalladium.com/localnews/area-was-seconds-away-from-blackout/article_513f5764-3e16-5ea9-b126-8c953f8ca859.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Some communities in Southwest Michigan were impacted, being among the most western locations impacted.<ref>[https://www.thedailyreporter.com/story/news/2021/09/13/although-power-grid-along-gulf-coast-pounded-hurricane-ida-summer-storms-had-little-impact-michigans/8273864002/ Right-of-way maintenance kept the Michigan power grid reliable] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926131448/https://www.thedailyreporter.com/story/news/2021/09/13/although-power-grid-along-gulf-coast-pounded-hurricane-ida-summer-storms-had-little-impact-michigans/8273864002/ |date=September 26, 2022 }} [[The Daily Reporter (Coldwater)|The Daily Reporter]]</ref> Although right across the border from [[Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario]], [[Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan]] was unaffected by the outage, as the two cities are not electrically connected.

==== Ohio ==== Over 540,000 homes and businesses were without power. In [[Cleveland]], water service stopped because the city is supplied by electric pumps and backup electricity was available only on a limited basis. Water had to be boiled for several days afterwards.

Cleveland declared a [[curfew]] on all persons under the age of 18. At [[Cedar Point]] amusement park in [[Sandusky, Ohio|Sandusky]], park employees had to help guests walk down the steps of the {{convert|205|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} [[Magnum XL-200]] roller coaster, which had stopped on the lift hill due to the blackout. Several other guests had to be helped off rides as a result of the blackout. In [[Toledo, Ohio|Toledo]], the [[Toledo Mud Hens|Mud Hens]] baseball team postponed the game scheduled for that night. Some parts of the city were unaffected by the blackout, notably the suburb of [[Sylvania, Ohio|Sylvania]]. Other surrounding cities like [[Bowling Green, Ohio|Bowling Green]] only experienced a brief outage.

==== Ontario ==== [[File:toronto ON 2003 Blackout.jpg|thumb|[[Toronto]], on the evening of 14 August 2003]] [[File:Jasonp blackout2003 toronto BayAdelaide.jpg|thumb|Volunteers, like Toronto lawyer Peter Carayiannis (pictured), received fluorescent jackets from the police to direct traffic in Toronto during the blackout. Traffic lights also went out of service.]] [[File:Jasonp blackout2003 toronto UnionStnInt.jpg|thumb|Toronto [[Union Station (Toronto)|Union Station]] during the blackout]]

The area affected by the blackout included all [[Southern Ontario]], except Grimsby, Pelham, [[Niagara Falls, Ontario|Niagara Falls]] and [[Fort Erie, Ontario|Fort Erie]], from [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]] to [[Ottawa]] and all the way to the [[Quebec]] border, except for the [[Cornwall, Ontario|Cornwall]] area.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ieso.ca/corporate-ieso/media/also-of-interest/blackout-2003|title=Looking Back at Blackout 2003|website=www.ieso.ca|access-date=August 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170822213029/http://www.ieso.ca/corporate-ieso/media/also-of-interest/blackout-2003|archive-date=August 22, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> Also affected was [[Northern Ontario]], as far north as [[Attawapiskat First Nation|Attawapiskat]] and [[Moosonee]] on [[James Bay]] and west to [[Marathon, Ontario|Marathon]] on the [[Lake Superior]] shoreline. Communities affected in northern Ontario included [[Timmins]], [[Cochrane, Ontario|Cochrane]], [[Greater Sudbury|Sudbury]], [[Kirkland Lake]], [[North Bay, Ontario|North Bay]], [[Wawa, Ontario|Wawa]], and [[Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario|Sault Ste. Marie]]. Most of [[Northwestern Ontario]] (including [[Thunder Bay]]) was not affected.

[[Traffic light]]s, which had no backup power, were all knocked out. All intersections were to be considered an [[all-way stop]]. Coupled with the beginning of the evening rush hour, this caused traffic problems. In multiple major and minor intersections in large cities, such as Ottawa and Toronto, ordinary citizens began directing traffic until police or others relieved them. Since there were not enough police officers to direct traffic at every intersection during the afternoon rush hour, passing police officers distributed fluorescent jackets to civilians who were directing traffic. Drivers and pedestrians generally followed the instructions from them, even though they were not police officers.<ref name="CBC archived news clip" />

In Ottawa, the federal government was shut down. The Parliamentary Precinct and [[Parliament Hill]] were evacuated.

In Toronto, the [[Toronto subway and RT]] and the [[Toronto streetcar system]] were shut down.<ref name="Rush hour halted in T.O.">{{cite news| title = Outage halts afternoon rush| url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/outage-halts-afternoon-rush-1.367225| access-date = August 14, 2013| website= CBC News|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation| date = August 14, 2003| author = CBC Staff| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160117055748/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2003/08/14/rush_hour030814.html| archive-date = January 17, 2016| location = Toronto| url-status = live| df = mdy-all}}</ref> Passengers had to be evacuated from subway trains by walking through the tunnels. Major Toronto hospitals reported that they had switched to generators and did not experience problems.<ref name="Hospitals OK in T.O.">{{cite news| title = Massive power failure hits Toronto| url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/massive-power-failure-hits-toronto-1.362053| access-date = August 14, 2013| website= CBC News|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation| date = August 15, 2003| author = CBC Staff| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160117055748/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2003/08/14/ont_power20030814.html| archive-date = January 17, 2016| location = Toronto| url-status = live| df = mdy-all}}</ref> The [[9-1-1]] system was operational.<ref name="Hospitals OK in T.O." /> The streetcars remained suspended on August 18 and 19, resuming after assurances they would be exempt from any potential rotating blackouts.

Toronto officials asked residents to curtail unnecessary use of water, as pumps were not working and there was only a 24-hour supply. Entertainment events were canceled for several days. English band [[Radiohead]] rescheduled a planned August 16 concert in Toronto until the following October 15 due to the power outage. The opening of the [[Canadian National Exhibition]], scheduled for August 15, was postponed to August 19. The roof of the [[Skydome]] in Toronto remained open in an effort to conserve power until August 21, when a thunderstorm struck.

Large disruptions of truck traffic in northeastern Ontario were reported due to the unavailability of fuel, including the backlog near [[North Bay, Ontario|North Bay]]. The [[Detroit–Windsor Tunnel|tunnel]] and [[Ambassador Bridge|bridge]] between [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]] and Detroit were also closed, with the bridge's pillars illuminated by emergency [[High-intensity discharge lamp|floodlights]], as to not pose a [[shipping]] and [[airplane]] hazard.

About 140 miners were marooned underground in the [[Falconbridge, Ontario|Falconbridge]] mine in [[Greater Sudbury|Sudbury]] when the power went out. Mine officials said they were safe and could be evacuated if necessary, but were not, due to the risks of doing so with no power. They were safely evacuated by the morning. In [[Sarnia]], a [[Refining (metallurgy)|refinery]] scrubber lost power and released above-normal levels of pollution; residents were advised to close their windows.

On the evening of August 14, [[Premier of Ontario|Ontario premier]] [[Ernie Eves]] declared a state of emergency, instructing nonessential personnel not to go to work the next day and that rolling blackouts could occur for weeks.<ref name="Ontario State of Emergency">{{cite news| last = Van Rijn| first = Nicholaas| title = BLACKOUT: Eves declares state of emergency and warns of rolling power outages for 'weeks to come'| newspaper = Toronto Star| date = August 15, 2003| location = Toronto| edition = Special}}</ref> Residents were asked not to use televisions, washing machines, or air conditioners if possible, and warned that some restored power might go off again.<ref name="Ontario State of Emergency" /> Although the full state of emergency was lifted the next day, residents were warned that the normal amount of power would not be available for days, and were still asked to reduce power consumption.<ref name="Ontario State of Emergency" />

For two days of this recovery period, diversion of water from the [[Niagara River]] for [[hydroelectric]] generation was increased to the maximum level, normally used only at night and in winter in order to maintain the scenic appearance of [[Niagara Falls]]. The resultant drop in the river level below the falls meant that the [[Maid of the Mist]] tour boats could not dock safely, and their operation had to be suspended.

The [[Petro-Canada]] [[oil refinery|refinery]] in [[Oakville, Ontario|Oakville]] had to perform an [[Plant process and emergency shutdown systems#Emergency shutdown (ESD)|emergency shutdown]] due to the lack of power. The plant's [[gas flare|flare]] system produced large flames during the shutdown, leading to erroneous reports in the media that there had been a fire in the plant.{{Citation needed|date=June 2008}} The Petro Canada lubricants plant in [[Mississauga]] experienced a fire one week later while restarting normal operations.<ref>{{cite web|date=August 22, 2003|title=Update on Fire and Explosion at Petro-Canada Lubricants Plant in Mississauga, Ontario|url=http://www.petro-canada.ca/en/media/1886.aspx?id=630421|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015182630/http://www.petro-canada.ca/en/media/1886.aspx?id=630421|archive-date=October 15, 2007|access-date=March 31, 2012|publisher=Petro-Canada}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=CDP Online Report_Port_3|url=https://www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk/error.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110725145113/http://www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk/docs/cdp_report3.pdf|archive-date=July 25, 2011|website=www.esmeefairbairn.org.uk}}</ref>

Many Torontonians remember that night as a moment where the community came together: "Without power, residents of Toronto took to the streets to help direct traffic; florists arranged flowers for weddings by candlelight; and convenience stores served customers in the blackness. The night sky was a rarely seen canopy of dazzling stars, twinkling down on the darkened city through soft summer heat that lingered into the evening."

==== Pennsylvania ====

The blackout was confined to the northwest portion of the state. The state's most populated metros of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh were unaffected. According to emergency officials in Erie, Crawford, Venango, Clarion, Bradford, Forest and Warren counties, outages lasted into the night, but there were no serious injuries or incidents.<ref>{{cite news |author =  |title = Pennsylvania hit by blackout, but just near Erie |url = https://www.post-gazette.com/news/nation/2003/08/15/Pennsylvania-hit-by-blackout-but-just-near-Erie/stories/200308150020 |work = Pittsburgh Post-Gazette |date = August 15, 2003 |access-date = June 20, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190620195009/https://www.post-gazette.com/news/nation/2003/08/15/Pennsylvania-hit-by-blackout-but-just-near-Erie/stories/200308150020 |archive-date = June 20, 2019 |url-status = live }}</ref>

== Emergency services ==

In New York, about 3,000 fire calls were reported, a number of them from people using candles. Emergency services responded to 80,000 calls for help, more than double the average.

From 4 p.m. of August 14 to midnight of August 15, there were 60 all-hands or greater alarm fires, caused mostly by candles. The FDNY answered over 7,500 calls which resulted in the transmission of over 4,000 alarms.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fdnewyork.com/lightsout.asp |title=Who Turned Out the Lights? |website=Fdnewyork.com |access-date=November 13, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131113113437/http://www.fdnewyork.com/lightsout.asp |archive-date=November 13, 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Fatalities === The blackout contributed to almost 100 deaths.<ref>{{cite news|title=Spike in deaths blamed on 2003 New York blackout|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-blackout-newyork/spike-in-deaths-blamed-on-2003-new-york-blackout-idUSTRE80Q07G20120127|access-date=1 November 2017|work=Reuters|date=January 26, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107021828/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-blackout-newyork/spike-in-deaths-blamed-on-2003-new-york-blackout-idUSTRE80Q07G20120127|archive-date=November 7, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> * In [[Ontario]], a cyclist was hit by a car in [[Guelph]]<ref>{{cite news|last=Greeno|first=Cherri|date=August 25, 2003|title=The Record.com|newspaper=[[Waterloo Region Record|The Record]]|publisher=[[Gannett Company]]|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/therecord/access/647946491.html?dids=647946491:647946491&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT|url-status=dead|access-date=April 21, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090321165914/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/therecord/access/647946491.html?dids=647946491:647946491&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT|archive-date=March 21, 2009|id={{ProQuest|}}}}</ref> and a father of two was hit by a car in his front yard west of [[Ottawa]]. Lewis Wheelan, a [[North York]] burn victim and a young man injured in an electrical accident in 2001, was found dead in his apartment when his air conditioning unit failed to keep his skin grafts adequately cooled, since his [[sweat gland]]s were destroyed by his prior [[electrical injury]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.sootoday.com/content/news/full_story.asp?StoryNumber=4396 |title=Sootoday.com |publisher=Sootoday.com |date=August 17, 2003 |first=David |last=Helwig |access-date=November 11, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141111204303/http://www.sootoday.com/content/news/full_story.asp?StoryNumber=4396 |archive-date=November 11, 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> * In [[Connecticut]], one death was reported. * In [[New York City]], six deaths were reported: Two from [[carbon monoxide]], two from fire, one from a fall off a roof while breaking into a shoe store, and one from a heart attack after climbing stairs. * In the [[Detroit]] suburb of [[Harper Woods, Michigan|Harper Woods]], [[WXYZ-TV]] news reported a man died from [[carbon monoxide poisoning]] after using a [[electrical generator|generator]] in his house. * In [[Pittsfield Township, Michigan]], a 27-year-old [[Belleville, Michigan|Belleville]] man died in a fire that destroyed the mobile home he was sleeping in, according to ''[[The Ann Arbor News]]''. Officials said the fire was apparently caused by candles left burning.

== Long-term effects ==

The blackout prompted the federal government of the United States to include reliability provisions in the [[Energy Policy Act of 2005]]. The standards of the [[North American Electric Reliability Corporation]] became mandatory for U.S. electricity providers.

In the United States, the [[George W. Bush|Bush]] administration had emphasized the need for changes to the U.S. national energy policy, [[critical infrastructure protection]], and [[homeland security]]. During the blackout, most systems that would detect unauthorized border crossings, port landings, or detect unauthorized access to a number of vulnerable sites failed. There was considerable fear that future blackouts would be exploited for [[terrorism]]. In addition, the failure highlighted the ease with which the power grid could be taken down.

The Ontario government fell in a [[2003 Ontario general election|provincial election]] held in October 2003; power had long been a major issue. The government may have been hurt by the success of [[Quebec]] and [[Manitoba]], which were not affected whereas Ontario was shut down. The extra publicity given to Ontario's need to import electricity from the United States, mostly due to a decision of the government not to expand the province's power generating capabilities, may also have adversely affected the Conservative government. Premier [[Ernie Eves]]'s handling of the crisis was also criticized; he was not heard from until long after Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Pataki had spoken out. Due to the regular announcements he gave in the days following the blackout, Eves enjoyed a moderate increase in the polls that his party took as a sign of an opportunity to call an [[2003 Ontario general election|election]] they could win, but they lost instead.

== Restoration of service == By evening of August 14, power had been restored to: * Many areas of [[Ontario]] * Parts of [[New Jersey]], [[Pennsylvania]], [[Ohio]] and [[Michigan]] * Parts of [[New York (state)|New York]], including [[Long Island]]

[[Con Edison]] retracted its claim that New York City would have power by 1 a.m. That night some areas of Manhattan regained power at approximately 5 a.m. (August 15), the New York City borough of [[Staten Island]] regained power around 3 a.m. on August 15, and Niagara Mohawk predicted that the [[Niagara Falls, New York|Niagara Falls]] area would have to wait until 8 a.m. In the New York City borough of Brooklyn power was not fully restored until around sunset on August 15.

By early evening of August 15, two airports, [[Cleveland Hopkins International Airport]] and [[Toronto Pearson International Airport]], were back in service.

Half of the affected part of Ontario had power by the morning of August 15, though even in areas where it had come back online, some services were still disrupted or running at lower levels. The last areas to regain power were usually suffering from trouble at local [[electrical substation]]s that was not directly related to the blackout itself.

By August 16, power was fully restored in New York and Toronto. Toronto's subway and streetcars remained out of service until August 18 to prevent the possibility of equipment being stuck in awkward locations if the power was interrupted again. Power had been mostly restored in Ottawa, though authorities warned of possible additional disruptions and advised conservation as power continued to be restored to other areas. Ontarians were asked to reduce their electricity use by 50% until all generating stations could be brought back on line. Four remained out of service on the 19th. Illuminated billboards were largely dormant for the week following the blackout, and multiple stores had only a portion of their lights on.

Preparations against the possible disruptions threatened by the [[Year 2000 problem]] have been credited for the installation of new electrical equipment and systems which allowed for a relatively rapid restoration of power in some areas.{{citation needed|date=November 2015}}

== Media coverage and official reports == In the United States and Canada, the regional blackout dominated news broadcasts and news headlines beginning August 15. U.S. and Canadian television networks pre-empted normal programming in favor of full-time, advertising-free coverage of the unfolding story. Once terrorism had been conclusively ruled out as a cause, multiple stations switched back to normal programming following an 8:30 p.m. EDT address by President [[George W. Bush]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/aug2003/2003-08-15-03.html |title=Blackout 2003: Bush Rules Out Terrorism, Pledges Grid Review |publisher=Newswire |date=August 15, 2003 |access-date=July 20, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120825024314/http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/aug2003/2003-08-15-03.html |archive-date=August 25, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref> National news stations, such as the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|CBC]] and [[CNN]], continued to cover the story by inviting politicians and electrical experts to discuss the situation and suggest ways to prevent blackouts. Internationally, coverage of the story focused on the development of the situation in the [[New York City]] metropolitan area.{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}}

=== Statements made in the aftermath === {{More citations needed section|date=May 2007}} During the first two hours of the event, various officials offered speculative explanations as to its root cause: * Official reports from the office of [[Prime Minister of Canada|Canadian Prime Minister]] [[Jean Chrétien]] stated that [[lightning]] had struck a power plant in northern New York, resulting in a [[cascading failure]] of the surrounding power grid and wide-area [[electric power transmission]] grid, resulted in the outage. (A lightning strike to a power substation north of New York City was similarly blamed for the [[1977 New York City blackout|1977 blackout]] that plunged nearly the entire city into darkness for 24 hours.) New York state power officials replied that the problem did not originate in the United States, there was no rain storm in the area where the lightning allegedly stuck, and the power plant in question remained in operation throughout the blackout. * Canadian Defence Minister [[John McCallum]] blamed an outage at a [[nuclear power|nuclear plant]] in [[Pennsylvania]], where state officials reported all plants were functioning normally. McCallum later said his sources had given him incorrect information. * [[New York (state)|New York]] governor [[George Pataki]] blamed the power outage on Canada, stating, "the New York independent systems operator says they are virtually certain it had nothing to do in New York state. And they believe it occurred west of [[Ontario]], cascaded from there into Ontario, Canada, and through the Northeast."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_1402915,00.html |title=Canada gets blackout blame: World: News |work=News24 |date=August 15, 2003 |access-date=April 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090319073230/http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,,2-10-1462_1402915,00.html |archive-date=March 19, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> This was later proven to be false. * CNN cited unnamed officials as saying that the [[Niagara-Mohawk power grid]], which provides power for large portions of New York and parts of Canada, was overloaded. Between 4:10 and 4:13 p.m. EDT, 21 power stations throughout that grid shut down.<ref name="CNN" /> * [[New Mexico]] governor [[Bill Richardson]], who formerly headed the [[United States Department of Energy|Department of Energy]], in a live television interview two hours into the blackout characterized the United States as "a superpower with a third-world electricity grid." In Europe, this statement was published accompanied with comparisons highlighting the tighter, safer and better interconnected European electricity network (though Italy would suffer a [[2003 Italy blackout|similar blackout]] six weeks later). * In the ensuing days, critics focused on the role of [[electricity market]] [[deregulation]] for the inadequate state of the [[electric power transmission]] grid, claiming that deregulation laws and electricity market mechanisms had failed to provide market participants with sufficient incentives to construct new transmission lines and maintain system security.{{Who|date=June 2010}} * Later that night, claims surfaced that the blackout may have started in Ohio up to one hour before the network shut down, a claim denied by Ohio's [[FirstEnergy]] utility.{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}} * The president of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation said that the problem originated in Ohio.<ref>{{cite web| title=Statement of Michehl R. Gent, President and CEO| url=http://www.nerc.com/pub_doc/media-statement-08-16-03.doc| publisher=North American Electric Reliability Council| access-date=March 31, 2012| author=Michehl R. Gent| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050120122317/http://www.nerc.com/pub_doc/media-statement-08-16-03.doc| archive-date=January 20, 2005| url-status=dead| df=mdy-all}}</ref> * By the morning of August 18, investigators believed that the problem began with a sudden shift in the direction of power flow on the northern portion of the [[Lake Erie Transmission Loop]], a system of transmission lines that circles [[Lake Erie]] on both U.S. and Canadian soil.{{Citation needed|date=June 2010}}

== Voluntary Blackout Day commemorations == In Ontario, some cities took part in power conservation challenges or events to remind citizens of the blackout, the most well-known event being the Voluntary Blackout Day hosted by the [[Ontario Power Authority]] (OPA). During these events, citizens were encouraged to maximize their [[energy conservation]] activities. Smaller cities such as [[London, Ontario|London]], [[Guelph]], [[Woodstock, Ontario|Woodstock]] and [[Waterloo, Ontario|Waterloo]] took part in the challenges annually. The final Voluntary Blackout Day was held on August 14, 2010, with OPA moving to more year-round energy conservation efforts.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Blackout Day fades to black|publisher=woodstocksentinelreview.com|url=http://www.woodstocksentinelreview.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3231415|url-status=dead|access-date=2011-10-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120407121447/http://www.woodstocksentinelreview.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3231415|archive-date=2012-04-07}}</ref>

In Toronto, an annual blackout anniversary party has been held on August 14 since 2006.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Campbell |first=Janiece |date=2024-08-15 |title=21 years later, Toronto residents dance, sing and drum in the streets to honour the 2003 blackout |url=https://nowtoronto.com/culture/21-years-later-toronto-residents-dance-sing-and-drum-in-the-streets-to-honour-the-2003-blackout/ |access-date=2025-08-16 |website=NOW Toronto |language=en-CA}}</ref> The event takes place at a different downtown location each year and typically features a parade, bike rave, fire performances, live music, bonfires, and cookouts. In 2024, attendance was estimated at 1,500 to 2,000 people.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Campbell |first=Janiece |date=2024-08-15 |title=21 years later, Toronto residents dance, sing and drum in the streets to honour the 2003 blackout |url=https://nowtoronto.com/culture/21-years-later-toronto-residents-dance-sing-and-drum-in-the-streets-to-honour-the-2003-blackout/ |access-date=2026-03-19 |website=NOW Toronto |language=en-CA}}</ref>

== See also == * ''[[Brittle Power]]'' * [[List of major power outages]] * [[Northeast blackout of 1965]] * [[New York City blackout of 1977]] * [[2003 Italy blackout]] * [[2011 Southwest blackout]] * [[Manhattan blackout of July 2019]] * [[2019 Java blackout]] * [[2012 India blackouts]] * [[2025 Iberian Peninsula blackout]] * [[2026 Sumatra blackout]]

== References == {{reflist}}

== Sources == * {{cite report |author=U.S.-Canada Power System Outage Task Force |date=April 2004 |title=Final Report on the August 14, 2003 Blackout in the United States and Canada: Causes and Recommendations |url=https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/oeprod/DocumentsandMedia/BlackoutFinal-Web.pdf |website=Energy.gov – Office of Electricity Delivery & Energy Reliability |publisher=[[United States Department of Energy]] |access-date=June 25, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170527210354/https://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/oeprod/DocumentsandMedia/BlackoutFinal-Web.pdf |archive-date=May 27, 2017 |url-status=live }}

== External links == === News stories === * [https://www.npr.org/2003/08/18/1396052/congressional-investigation-into-blackout-begins NPR News] (special feature) * [https://www.sfgate.com/science/article/how-a-butterfly-s-wing-can-bring-down-goliath-2595788.php San Francisco Chronicle: Chaos theories calculate the vulnerability of megasystems] (August 15, 2003) * [https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3152451.stm BBC: Blackouts cause North America chaos] (August 15, 2003) * [http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/08/14/power.outage/index.html CNN: Major power outage hits New York, other large cities] (August 14, 2003)

=== Other links === * [https://web.archive.org/web/20050520091828/http://www.gothamist.com/archives/2003/08/15/the_new_york_city_blackout_edition.php Coverage and pictures] * [https://www.ferc.gov/sites/default/files/2020-05/09-12-03-blackout-sum.pdf FERC U.S./Canada Power Outage Task Force Sequence of Events] September 2003 (PDF) * [https://www.energy.gov/oe/august-2003-blackout August 2003 Blackout] – energy.gov * [https://archive.org/search.php?query=subject%3A%22August+14%2C+2003+blackout%22&sort=creatorSorter Collection of reports analyzing the August 14, 2003 blackout]

[[Category:2003 disasters in Canada]] [[Category:2003 disasters in the United States]] [[Category:2003 in Connecticut]] [[Category:2003 in economic history]] [[Category:2003 in Massachusetts]] [[Category:2003 in Michigan]] [[Category:2003 in New Jersey]] [[Category:2003 in New York (state)]] [[Category:2003 in Ohio]] [[Category:2003 in Ontario]] [[Category:2003 in Pennsylvania]] [[Category:August 2003 in North America]] [[Category:FirstEnergy]] [[Category:Canada–United States relations]] [[Category:History of the Northeastern United States]] [[Category:Power outages in the United States]] [[Category:Power outages in Canada]] [[Category:Software bugs]]