The Night the Lights Went Out

New York City  

July 13, 1977 – 8:56 PM

Aaron

“Avi! Grab that broom, go sweep outside. When you done go next door, we need dinner. Here’s ten. But quick, luncheonette closes at 9:30.”

Aaron huffed as he pushed the door open. He was so looking forward to going home after a very long and hot day. What’s the point of sweeping at night. The sidewalk will just be dirty by morning, he thought. A singular street lamp shined down onto his father’s oldsmobile station wagon parked right outside. Out of the storefront, under the sign bearing “Edelmann’s Jewelry and Pawn Shop”, blinked a red sign: “CA$H 4 GOLD”. The L had stopped working and his father refused to replace it, so for the past month it read “CA$H 4 GOD”.

His father was like that in many ways. The money never went toward repairs. He was saving for his family in the old country. Even in today’s 95 degree heat, his father refused to install an air-conditioner. The weatherman predicted another week of these temperatures. Aaron had argued with his father about this. He thought maybe having an AC would attract people inside. It was not like their location was bad. 94th and Columbus on the Upper West Side was pretty prime real estate for a pawn shop. But still, they stood empty all day. “People just aren’t buying now” his dad would say. “Economy is bad but we’ll get through”. Aaron just wished he was at home. There were so many other things he could do with his summer before his senior year. He knew that they still had to drive all the way back to Crown Heights, which with traffic could take an hour and a half.

Peggy

“I’m by the train now, Marsha. I’ll see you soon. Don’t worry.” click. Peggy hung up the payphone and sped down the steps into the Prospect Park D train station. The subway tokens jingled in her pocket as she ran. She got to the platform just as a train pulled onto the tracks. Double checking that this was in fact the manhattan bound train, she stepped inside and picked a seat next to the door. Peggy hated empty train cars. She was indecisive and there were too many seats to choose from. They were also a little creepy.

Marsha had invited her to go to Studio 54. The hottest new club had a reputation for attracting celebrities, and they were going to stand outside in the hopes of catching a glimpse of one. Maybe they would even get an autograph. The plan was so last minute, suggested by Marsha earlier that day in typing class. The two were enrolled in summer classes at Brooklyn College together and had become very close over the past two weeks.

Peggy was hesitant about saying yes at first. When she told her mother she was going to go out at night they fought. Peggy understood why her mom didn’t want her going out. With all those rumors about the Son of Sam killer, there wasn’t a woman in New York who wasn’t on edge. But being 20 in the city, she wanted to have some fun.

She promised her mom to be extra vigilant and find the first payphone to call once she met up with Marsha and Marsha’s “boyfriend”. Peggy had lied to her mother and said he would be there because she knew her mother would never let her go if it were just the two girls. That doesn’t make sense she thought. I am a modern woman who knows how to take care of herself. And besides, I know plenty of men who are about as tough as a noodle. What good would having one of those around do?  

Looking around the subway car she counted the other passengers. One white teen couple canoodling near the doors. One elderly East Asian man with two shopping bags. One middle aged African American woman half asleep. One young white guy in a baseball cap, thick glasses, and tan jacket. Having finished, she began to decipher the graffiti on the train car walls.

Jim

“Small coffee. Regular milk, two sugars. And a bagel toasted with butter and jelly. Anything else?” the cashier asked. Jim shook his head. “That’ll be 2.25.” Jim handed over a five. He took his change and order, then dropped one quarter into the tip jar. Pocketing the rest he scanned the inside of Grand Central Station’s dining area for a seat and found an empty bench. Settling in, he unwrapped his bagel and took a big bite. It was the first time he had eaten since breakfast this morning.

Jim’s day was incredibly hectic. He had two job interviews and one consulting appointment all over the city today so he spent his day yo-yo-ing back and forth since leaving his harlem apartment at 10:00 this morning. Most of his days were like this since he lost his job back in May. Jim had been a cartoonist for the Daily News, the first black man ever hired for the job. But when the economy fell, the company didn’t see the need for more than one cartoonist. Jim’s twenty years of experience couldn’t save him. His co-worker Kevin had gone to art school, so Jim had to go. At least that’s the excuse the boss had given him.

Jim looked at his watch. He had another forty five minutes before his train left to Philly. Jim had an interview at the Inquirer first thing in the morning so he thought he’d take an overnight train and spend the night there to avoid being late. Jim needed this job. He had enough rent money to make it three more weeks. He pulled out his wallet and took out the ticket, to make sure his they got his name right. James Adam Williams. How regal he thought. He slid it back in, then glimpsed the cash inside. 15 dollars.

Putting his wallet away he searched through his leather portfolio case for a copy of the Times he had bought that morning. Jim flipped through it, straight to the cartoon section.

 

July 13, 1977 – 9:36 PM

Aaron

“Did you get mustard?” his dad asked. Aaron nodded his head but his father wasn’t looking. He was rolling down the metal shutters outside the store. “Hmm?” he asked again. “Da” replied Aaron.

The Street lamp above them flickered, then went out. The ones all along the block followed milliseconds after. Aaron peaked his head out toward the intersection on the corner in time to see the stoplight shut off. He heard the screeching brakes of a car. Within seconds, everything was dark.

Aaron’s dad stopped what he was doing. He motioned for Aaron to stay where he was, and began to walk toward the road, passing cautiously in between parked cars, and peering up and down Columbus Ave. “It’s blackout!” he said. Aaron followed close behind, and looked down toward 93rd. All along the avenue, the street was pitch black. Suddenly someone ran past them. One, then two. More and more people, running up and down the sidewalk, into stores and buildings, everywhere with an open door. Aaron’s father pushed him back toward the store.

“What do we do?” asked Aaron. “Should we lock up and just go home?” His father was silent for a moment, then said “pull the roll down back up.” Aaron was in shock, but he did what he was told. Last time there was a blackout, he was five. His memories were rather hazy.

“Go inside.” his father beckoned, then locked the door behind them. His father disappeared into the back room, then came out with a two candles and a flashlight. He took out his packet of Marlboro Lights and shook out the lighter. He lit up a cigarette, then lit the candle. Blowing smoke out of his nose, he said “Give me the food. I’m starving.” Aaron handed over the brown bag, then asked “So that’s it. We’re just gonna eat here?”

“What you want me to do?”

“We can go home. Just close up the store, roll down the shutters, and we can go.”

“You wan’ me to drive now? No. It’s dark. Look at all the people, they run everywhere. I cannot drive with people in street. I could have accident. No, we have couch in back, you can sleep. We stay whole night.”

Aaron couldn’t believe his ears. He grabbed a coke out of the bag of food and popped it open. After taking a sip he set it down on the glass counter. “What are we going to do all night?” he asked. “Well” his father replied, “keep each other company.”

Peggy

The conductor’s voice came over the speaker. “This is Dekalb Avenue. Next stop Grand Street.” The train pulled out of the station and hurled down the track. Peggy knew the train would be passing over the Manhattan bridge into the city, so she remained wide awake. The view of the city and the Brooklyn Bridge you got from the train window was unlike anything else.

They were about halfway over the bridge when the train screeched to a very sudden halt, jolting Peggy from her seat as she scrambled to hold onto a pole. The lights inside the car shut off and she heard the air conditioning quiet. The sudden stop had awoken the sleeping woman, who got up to peer out the window. “It’s all dark!” she yelled. Taking a cue from her, everyone in the car moved toward the window to glance. All of the building lights had shut off, and all of New York City had been plunged into darkness. It was a silhouette of itself. “It’s a blackout.” Peggy said to herself.

The woman reached to open a window. “What are you doing, wait!” yelled Peggy. It’s hotter outside. We can keep the cool air in here for a while, she thought. The woman stopped and turned toward her. “Please, it’s still cool here, let’s wait a bit.” she told the woman. The woman stood for a moment, then lowered her arms from the window and sat down.

Peggy sat down and closed her eyes. She wondered how long she would be on this train. She was already running late and now this had to happen. It seemed to her that the world had conspired with her mother to prevent her going out.

Jim

Jim quickened his pace as he walked toward his train’s platform. It was on the other end of the terminal and he would have to walk through the crowded main concourse, which meant pushing through a stream of people. Cup of coffee in hand, he moved sideways, squeezing between crevices a man of his size should not have been able to fit through with that much ease. He was about half way through the lobby, right by the clock in the center, when all the lights shut off.

It was as if the whole station had powered down, even the people in it. Everyone just stood where they were, looking around, full of expectation that this inconvenience was some practical joke, and the lights would come back on within seconds. Or better yet, that they had in fact imagined the lights going off in a fit of stress-induced insanity.

To Jim, it seemed that everyone was frozen. No one was moving, thus neither was he. The realization that this was in fact happening, did not change their reactions. It was quite a while before people began to move, seemingly in slow motion, toward exits or wherever their inner compass directed them.

Jim resolved that he would wait in the lobby. It can’t last too long. The lights ‘ll come back on soon he thought. People around him were finding corners, benches, counters, and getting comfortable. It seemed they all knew something about this black out that he didn’t. Spotting a corner free from crowds, Jim sat down. He took out his drawing pad and charcoal, and began to sketch. 

 

July 13, 1977 – 11:36 PM

Aaron

The sounds of police sirens speeding passed outside the store had woken Aaron. He had dozed off unexpectedly while sitting on the floor of the store, leaning against the counter. Now, he felt groggy and disoriented. There were two more candles lit around the shop. I guess dad found them in the back he thought. Lifting himself from the floor he looked around for his dad and found him perched on a stool behind the cash register, smoking a cigarette and tinkering with a knot in a gold chain under the illumination of a flashlight. He too had stopped when he heard the police sirens.

“Did you sleep?” his dad asked. Aaron shook his head yes and reached for his soda. It had gone flat. “What time is it?” Aaron asked. “I don’t know.” his dad replied. His father shined the flashlight on the clock above the doorframe, just as a man banged on the glass door. “Open the door!” he yelled, lifting his arms to reveal a large rock.

Within seconds the block was overwhelmed with people running up and down smashing storefronts, and car windows. Aaron stumbled backwards and his dad screamed for him to go to the back room and lock the door. Aaron spotted his old baseball bat in the corner and lunged toward it as he heard glass smashing behind him. Turning around he swung  the bat toward the front door, where two scrawny guys were now standing. The rock had been sent through the door and landed inches away from his father. Aaron lunged forward and screamed “Get the fuck out of here! Get out!”. The two grabbed the necklace from the counter and dashed out. 

Watching them run, Aaron saw several guys smashing the windows of his dad’s car. He stepped forward, ready to go out there, when a hand pulled him back. “No. Stop.” said his father. “It’s just car. You get hurt.” Aaron lowered the bat. Just as quickly as the wave had come, it was now moving down the block. Aaron peeked out the hole, surveying the damage. Trash lay all over and some cans were on fire. He saw the outline of smoke in the distance too. Broken glass lay all over the sidewalk and road. The moonlit street looked as if it had been through a tornado.  .

“Here.” he heard his father say. “Go sweep up glass inside, so you don’t get cut.” Aaron wanted to laugh. “Then you sweep outside again. We don’t want messy street outside our store.” Aaron set the bat down, and picked up the broom.

Peggy

Everyone in the train car was quiet. The teen couple had sat down, and the girl leaning against her boyfriend, the two had fallen asleep. The woman was looking out the window, her legs stretched out across the bench. Peggy was bored. She had spent her time imagining the celebrities she could have met. Lisa Minelli. Elton John. The Rolling Stones. She dreamed of the day she would make it inside to party with the rich and famous.

The windows of the car had begun to fog up and Peggy stood up to open one. It let in a summer breeze. The heat from the day had fallen off a bit but it was still humid. She had just finished pulling the window open when the man from across the cart moved toward her. His face was deadpan. His eyes locked with hers.

Peggy, spooked, began to shuffle backwards away from him, in the direction of the middle-aged woman. Peggy thought about what her mom had told her, about creepy men on the train. Then she thought about the Son of Sam. Could this be him she thought. Would he really kill me with all these people present?

Peggy felt her hands shaking. The man had stopped several feet in front of her. “Miss, do you have the time?” he asked. Hi voice was soft and smooth. “Sorry… I… I don’t have a watch.” she replied. “That’s okay. Do you have a cigarette?” he persisted. “Sorry… I don’t smoke.” Peggy’s mind was racing. She had never imagined “Shot in a stalled subway car on the Manhattan Bridge during a Blackout” was how she’d die.

The man began to search around in his jacket pockets. He’s looking for his gun. Peggy was losing it.

Peggy fainted.

She awoke to the cart’s passengers standing over her. The man’s jacket was under her head. The old man got a juice box out of his bag for Peggy. “Are you okay?” asked the middle aged woman.

Peggy was disoriented and very hot but alright. She shook her head yes and sat upright. “What happened?” she asked. “I was going to offer you some m&m’s but you fainted” said the man. “You seemed pale and I assumed your blood sugar was low.” Peggy furrowed her brows. “What’re you some kind of creep?”. “No.” he replied. “I’m a doctor… I’m sorry for all the questions earlier, I just didn’t know how to broach the issue.” he said laughing awkwardly. See she thought, respectable people ride the subway too. She resolved to stop listening to her mother.

Jim

His sketch of the station was almost finished. Jim was just about done with the shading. He removed his glasses and slid them into his shirt pocket, rubbing his eyes. He looked around the lobby. Those who had remained inside were asleep, huddled together. The blackout had triggered the burglar alarms which after two hours were still ringing. How anyone could sleep through them was beyond Jim’s understanding.

Jim didn’t want to sleep. He would resist it as much as he could.  He still held hope that the lights would come back on and he wanted to be the first person on that train to Philly. He held hope that he would make it to his interview.

Jim picked himself off of the floor and headed outside to get some fresh air. He stepped outside into a hectic scene. Cab drivers lined up and down the block headlights glaring. They were all shouting destinations. Newark. Westchester. Yonkers. Coney Island. People were yelling back negotiations. “I’m on the way can you stop in Bay Ridge”. “I’ll pay double but I gotta get to Flushing.” It was a spectacle. Jim watched a four door Ford sedan drive off with seven passengers. One man had to be shoved in by two guys, so the door would close.

Jim pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket. There were four left. Putting one into his mouth he loosened his tie.  He took a drag and puffed a large plume of smoke up into the air. For a moment he had closed his eyes and immediately felt himself about to fall asleep. Finishing his cigarette he tossed it onto the floor and went back inside.

Still no movement. Jim found his corner unoccupied. He sat back down and rested his head on the marble side of the ticket counter. The cool marble felt amazing at his temples and for a second he closed his eyes. With that, Jim dozed off.

 

July 14, 1977 – 5:08 AM

Aaron

The plastic bags Aaron’s dad taped over the hole in the door were crinkling in the breeze. Aaron woke up to the sun rising into the windows of the shop. He had fallen asleep seated and his neck and back were aching. Aaron was sitting on the stool behind the cash register when his dad walked out of the back room. His father, satisfied that Aaron could handle the store, had gone to the back and fallen asleep.

“You ready to go?” his dad asked. “Go where?” asked Aaron. “We go home now. Store will be fine.” Aaron wondered how his father planned to get from the Upper West Side to the middle of Brooklyn with a damaged car. “How are we gonna get there?” asked Aaron. Aaron’s dad looked at him, then said “Broken window does not mean car doesn’t drive. Clean off glass. Let’s go.”

Peggy

Opening her eyes, Peggy saw a figure approach the window of the subway car. A small face popped in and said in loud voice “We’re gonna get you out.” Peggy sprung to her feet and watched as the figure hobbled slowly over to the door. The door opened and revealed an employee with a step stool extending out his hand to help them out of the car.

Peggy stepped down onto the subway tracks. She was looking along the train and saw the hundreds of other passengers who were trapped inside. Mothers with children and people returning from work, who never made it home. Peggy thought about all the places those people had to be and who was waiting for them when they would get there. What was she so afraid of?

The employee ushered everyone over the fence onto the Manhattan Bridge’s pedestrian walkway. The sun was just coming up and the sky had an orange glow, against a completely black cityscape. Peggy was right, nothing could compare to the view from the bridge.

Jim

Jim’s eyes were bloodshot as he sat in the terminal. He woke up half an hour after dozing off, having felt his charcoal portfolio slipping from his lap. His first instinct was that it was being stolen. Realizing it was just sliding on its own, Jim could no longer sleep and began to draw again.

Having lost track of time, he now saw faint light shining into the station through the little windows near the ceiling and realized it was almost morning. The station, normally full of bustling workers and people rushing to and fro was almost entirely vacant. Even those passengers who had remained well into the night, had given up and gone home.

Jim realized he would not be making it to Philly. Standing up he checked his pockets for his belongings, assured that nothing was missing, and went out the doors. He stopped at a cart and bought a coffee and bagel. 2.25. He then stepped outside and flagged down a cab. Hopping in, he asked if the driver was going to harlem. He gave the driver his address and sat back sipping his coffee all the way there.

He paid the driver his last fourteen dollars. Given the circumstances, cabs were taking advantage of desperate people and price surges were not uncommon. Jim climbed the stairs to his third floor apartment and flung open the door. The sun was shining through his windows. Jim kicked off his shoes, slipped off his tie and ripped off shirt. He flung himself into bed, falling into a deep restful sleep. 

END

 

Commuters waiting for trains were stranded in Grand Central Terminal. The clock on the back wall froze at the time of the blackout. Associated Press.

Business owners on the upper west side use baseball bats to guard their stores from looters. Associated Press.

The blackout lasted almost 25 hours, 12 of which were spent in complete darkness. It reportedly resulted in $300 million worth of damages.