Manhattan theaters, streetlights go dark in blackout

NEW YORK — Lights gradually came back on Saturday night after a power failure rippled the heart of Manhattan just as Broadway shows were set to go on, sending theatergoers spilling into the streets, knocking out Times Square’s towering electronic screens and bringing subway lines to a near halt. The New York City Fire Department said a transformer fire just before 7 p.m. at West 64th Street and West End Avenue affected hundreds of thousands of customers along a 30block stretch from Times Square to about 72nd Street and Broadway.

The temperature was warm, above 80 even as the sun set, but not as steaming as Manhattan can get in July.

Power reportedly went out early Saturday evening at much of Rockefeller Center and reached the Upper West Side.

At Rockefeller Center, traffic lights were out. Some buildings in Rockefeller Plaza had lights on, others were dark.

The blackout came on the anniversary of the 1977 New York City outage that left most of the city without power. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in a statement that although no injuries had been reported, “the fact that it happened at all is unacceptable,” and the Department of Public Service will investigate the blackout. Many Broadway musicals and plays canceled their Saturday evening shows, including “Hadestown,” which won the Tony Award for best musical last month. Several cast members from the show put on an impromptu performance in the street outside the theater for disappointed audience members.