Saturday was the 42nd anniversary of the July 13-14, 1977 New York City blackout, which took out power to most of the city, resulted in widespread civil disturbances and looting, and helped usher in an era of noxious “tough on crime” politics. Another blackout struck NYC yesterday, though this one appears to be restricted to parts of Manhattan and the primary concern appears to be rescuing people trapped in elevators.
According to CBS New York, neighborhoods confirmed to have been affected include the Theater District, Hell’s Kitchen, and the Upper West Side. Street lights are out and several metro stations are dark, CBS added, while there are reports of individuals trapped in elevators (one tweet from a Twitter user purported to depict just that). The Con Edison outage map showed over 45,000 customers without electricity, per NBC.
The New York Daily News reported that the cause is currently believed to be a “transformer explosion and fire around W. 64th St. and West End Ave” (alternately described as a “manhole explosion on 65th Street and West End Avenue,” per CBS)