In 2003, one of the most severe power outages in history affected the northeastern US and parts of eastern Canada. This video summarizes the events leading up to and during the blackout. My Power Grid playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1BMWczn7JM Joint Task Force Report: https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/oeprod/DocumentsandMedia/BlackoutFinal-Web.pdf Errata: (1) A few areas outside of New York and Toronto were without power for more than a day. (2) The graphic showing the outage area includes Quebec, but Quebec is on a separate interconnection that was not significantly affected by the 2003 event. (3) MISO is usually pronounced 'myso,' not 'meeso.' (4) When I said "NERC standards," I should have said "NERC policies." They weren't mandatory until after the 2003 event. Watch this video and the entire Practical Engineering catalog ad-free on Nebula: https://go.nebula.tv/practical-engineering Practical Engineering is a YouTube channel about infrastructure and the human-made world around us. It is hosted, written, and produced by Grady Hillhouse. We have new videos posted regularly, so please subscribe for updates. If you enjoyed the video, hit that ‘like’ button, give us a comment, or watch another of our videos! CONNECT WITH ME ____________________________________ Website: http://practical.engineering/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/HillhouseGrady Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/practicalengineering Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/PracticalEngineering Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PracticalEngineerGrady​ Patreon: http://patreon.com/PracticalEngineering SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES ____________________________________ Please email my agent at practicalengineering@standard.tv DISCLAIMER ____________________________________ This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes. SPECIAL THANKS ____________________________________ Stock video and imagery provided by Getty Images, Shutterstock, Pond5, and Videoblocks. Tonic and Energy by Elexive is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6fBPdu8w9U Producer/Writer/Host: Grady Hillhouse Editor/Production Assistant: Wesley Crump Script Editor: Ralph Crewe