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ON AUGUST 14 2003, an electricity outage caused by a tree branch in Ohio plunged more than 50 million people in North America and Canada into darkness.
It was the largest power outage in America’s history. Commuters in New York City and elsewhere had to sleep on steps, hitchhike or walk home as trains were rendered powerless and gas pumps stopped working, food spoiled as refrigerators and freezers thawed, water sold out as supply plants lost their ability to supply consumers and people were fearful it was a terrorist attack as it was just two years after 9/11.
Here are some pictures of the power outage:
Were you there at the time? Tell us about it in the comments section.
- additional reporting AP
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