Mon Sep 12, 2005 7:59 PM ET
LOS ANGELES, Sept 12 (Reuters) - A utility worker overloaded an electrical circuit and caused a massive power blackout across much of Los Angeles on Monday, snarling traffic, stranding office workers in elevators and sending fire trucks with blaring sirens racing around the city
Some two million people were hit by the outage, which plunged busy intersections into chaos, jammed cars on the freeways and sent office workers streaming out of downtown buildings to mill about on sidewalks. Those trapped in elevators made frantic calls for help.
The utility worker "directed too much amperage into a circuit that did not have the capacity to handle it," said Kim Hughes, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
The resulting power surge triggered a safety mechanism that shut the system down, Hughes said, knocking out power for more half the city's four million people as well as some surrounding communities and north into the San Fernando Valley.
Power was largely restored within 90 minutes, but the outage jangled nerves in Los Angeles one day after a masked man thought to be an al Qaeda associate threatened America's second-largest city in a videotape released on the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks.
"The fact that this happened the day after Sept. 11 (caused) a heightened sense of concern," said Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. "I am here to assure you that our city is prepared to handle these situations. In fact power was restored to the vast majority of DWP customers, 90 percent, within the first two hours."
ABANDONED HIGH-RISE OFFICES
Some, remembering the collapse of the World Trade Center towers on Sept. 11, abandoned their high-rise offices despite assurances from security personnel that they should remain at their desks.
"When they said to stay, I thought 'I'm going,'" clerical worker Erica Fernandez told Reuters.
State and local authorities have dismissed the videotaped threats, saying that there was no credible evidence of a plan for an imminent terrorist strike against Los Angeles.
Department of Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said federal agents monitored the situation but said there was "no indication of a nexus to terrorism."
| Though there was no sign of sabotage,
authorities declared a state of emergency and police went on "full
tactical alert" shortly after the 12:35 p.m. PDT (3:35 p.m. EDT)
blackout, which struck seemingly random parts of the city.
Los Angeles International Airport reported losing power briefly but said back-up systems had averted flight disruptions. The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority said subway and rail lines were operating with some delays but that no riders had been stranded or trapped. Gasoline prices jumped more than 7 cents in the city after three refineries went offline and local hospitals canceled procedures scheduled for the afternoon. Television images showed confusion at major intersections as
motorists tried to navigate through darkened stoplights and traffic
backed up on exit ramps, clogging the freeways. |