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:    • How Does the Power Grid Work?  

Joint Task Force Report: https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/...

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.

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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!

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