12. Blackouts and Brownouts Plagued Major Cities
During the 1970s energy crisis, major cities like New York experienced significant power outages. On July 13, 1977, a severe thunderstorm caused lightning to strike critical transmission lines, leading to a city-wide blackout that lasted over 24 hours. This outage left approximately 8 million people in the dark and resulted in widespread looting, arson, and over 1,000 fires. (pbs.org) The crisis underscored the vulnerability of urban infrastructure to energy shortages and highlighted the need for robust energy management systems. (pbs.org)
