# Blackout in LA? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 12, 2005, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322 "2005-09-12T20:32:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Green\_Cymbeline](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_cymbeline/32/9244_2.png) [@Green\_Cymbeline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Cymbeline)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/1 "2005-09-12T20:32:10Z")
Is there any link between the power outages in LA and the tape released yesterday with a terrorist threatening LA? From here: [http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/12/la.power.outage.ap/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/12/la.power.outage.ap/index.html) > [@](#): > > Power outages hit Los Angeles > LOS ANGELES, California (AP) – A large portion of Los Angeles was blacked out Monday when electrical power was lost. > > The power got knocked out shortly before 1 p.m. PT after two power surges. > > Traffic lights throughout downtown and the San Fernando Valley were not working, causing major traffic problems, according to video from helicopter news crews. > > Downtown highrises also were darkened. > > The city’s department of water and power said it was investigating the cause and extent of the outage. Story about the threat tape: [http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/12/alqaeda.tape/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/12/alqaeda.tape/index.html) > [@](#): > > Officials downplay threat on purported al Qaeda tape > > WASHINGTON (CNN) – U.S. counterterrorism officials said Monday that they were skeptical that a purported al Qaeda tape that threatened California and Australia was a prelude to an attack. > > On the tape, a masked man speaking in American-accented English says, “Yesterday, London and Madrid. Tomorrow, Los Angeles and Melbourne, Allah willing.” > > One official said it “appears to be just a propaganda tool put out by al Qaeda to mark the 9/11 anniversary,” which was Sunday. > > A counterterrorism official said analysts are telling local officials, “Don’t get too spun up about the threat to L.A.”, noting that there has been “very little linkage over time” between al Qaeda tapes and attacks. > > ABC News first obtained and broadcast the tape Sunday. ---
**Author:** ![World\_Eater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f04885/32.png) [@World\_Eater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/World_Eater)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/2 "2005-09-12T20:36:34Z")
There doesn’t seem to be any correllation. If that was their terror attack, I’d be a happy man. They went from killing thousands to making people 30 minutes late in their morning commute. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Cymbeline](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_cymbeline/32/9244_2.png) [@Green\_Cymbeline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Cymbeline)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/3 "2005-09-12T20:40:51Z")
The latest from CNN: > [@](#): > > LOS ANGELES, California (AP) – A large portion of Los Angeles was hit with a blackout Monday afternoon. > > The city was investigating the cause and extent of the outage. But Sgt. Catherine Plows, a police spokeswoman, said terrorism was not suspected. > > Electrical power was knocked out shortly before 1 p.m. after two power surges, and traffic was snarled at intersections throughout the city when stop lights went dark. The lights also went out at downtown high-rises. > > The Police Department went on “full tactical alert,” meaning no officers were allowed to leave duty. > > The blackout came a day after ABC aired a videotape of a purported al Qaeda member making terrorist threats against Los Angeles and Melbourne, Australia, on the fourth anniversary of the September 11 attacks. (Full story) > > Heavy usage on hot days can lead to blackouts. But the weather in Los Angeles was not unusually hot Monday. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/4 "2005-09-12T20:41:30Z")
It’s coming back up. My wife’s been stuck at home in Westwood for the last 45 minutes because the garage door wouldn’t open, but she says the power just came back on. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/5 "2005-09-12T20:46:56Z")
It’s been common knowledge for many years that California’s got a huge problem with its power supply systems. If any ‘terrorist cell’ claimed ‘responsibility’ would anyone actually believe them? ---
**Author:** ![Campion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@Campion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Campion)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/6 "2005-09-12T20:52:38Z")
I’m in a high rise downtown; the power’s back up here. Seriously, though, there’s nothing like a power failure to make otherwise rational adults act like they’re ninth graders with a substitute teacher. **GorillaMan** , the problem with that theory is that it’s actually the LA _area_ that has a problem with power; LA itself is not on the grid, as I understand it, so an attack on the grid would cripple a small part of the southland, but not all, while an attack on other parts of the power supply would leave LA functional. But if this is the terrorists – damn them all! I was without email and internet and printer for an hour and had to live by telephone! Hey – do any midwesterners remember the rat in the transformer that shut down power to several states? ---
**Author:** ![DiosaBellissima](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@DiosaBellissima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DiosaBellissima)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/7 "2005-09-12T20:57:37Z")
Blackouts? In California? Gasp! But seriously, those terrorists are getting clever if they realize that the way to hurt LA is to take away the power. 1: People already drive like fools in Los Angeles, I seriously doubt they can handle no lights. 2: All the liberal media will be shut down (in theory! haha!) 3: Lazy, fat Americans will have to leave their TVs, radios, computers, and wall plug in vibrators. Then everyone will be outside and be easy targets! Don’t let the terrorists win. Get back to those electronics, my friends! ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/8 "2005-09-12T21:00:07Z")
Well, that was entertaining. About the best part of the blackout for us here in the office is that one of our annoying coworkers was stuck across the street at lunch and couldn’t get back to the office during the outage. Otherwise, all was calm. The phones worked – no biggie. My only concern would have been if this had happened during the evening rush hour, since I commute by subway and train. THEN you would have seen ugliness in downtown. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/9 "2005-09-12T21:58:39Z")
Urgent message to anyone affected by the current power outage: _ **YOUR POWER IS OUT!** _ There. That should help. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/10 "2005-09-12T22:36:03Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#): > > Urgent message to anyone affected by the current power outage: > > _ **YOUR POWER IS OUT!** _ > > There. That should help. :dubious: You should apply for that job vacancy at FEMA. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [September 12, 2005, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/11 "2005-09-12T23:51:02Z")
It happened at the perfect moment- My boss was reaming me about something really minor when the lights went out. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/12 "2005-09-13T00:02:48Z")
Evidently, it was caused by [someone’s goof](http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2005/09/12/state/n145302D58.DTL). ---
**Author:** ![Rilchiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/2bfe46/32.png) [@Rilchiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rilchiam)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/13 "2005-09-13T01:57:40Z")
But my conspiracy-theory co-worker insists it was A-Q. He’d say that even if the DPW worker personally apologized and described the mistake to him. I was at work. First we heard that another branch of our store was without power, then _schwooom…_ our whole mall shut down. We milled around for about an hour and a half. At one point, the word was that a) it would take three hours before DPW would even be able to identify the problem and b) the store manager was going to make us all stay to the end of our shifts, power or no power. I wouldn’t have minded leaving early, except with no TV and no computer at home, what for? 😉 When we did get the power back, certain bank cards had to have authorization called in, because apparently that particular bank’s computers weren’t back up yet. ---
**Author:** ![Wolfian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/7ea924/32.png) [@Wolfian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolfian)\ **Post date:** [September 13, 2005, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/blackout-in-la/321322/14 "2005-09-13T13:40:42Z")
> [@World Eater](#): > > There doesn’t seem to be any correllation. If that was their terror attack, I’d be a happy man. They went from killing thousands to making people 30 minutes late in their morning commute. [Jon Stewart]COMMUTERS!!![/JS]