Responding to a Blackout, but on Alert for Terrorism

When power went out across vast pockets of the Northeast yesterday, the New York Police Department initially responded as it would to a major terrorist attack, officials said yesterday. A special command center in the Bronx was activated, police helicopters and harbor units increased patrols, the police in each borough began to operate as independent departments and heavily armed teams were deployed to potential targets. But when it quickly became apparent that the blackout was the result of a failure that triggered shutdowns in parts of the nation’s power grid, the department shifted its focus, though many of the same anti-terrorism measures remained in place, Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly said. Each precinct in the city, Mr. Kelly said, put into effect blackout plans designed specifically for its neighborhoods. Working from the plans, the police secured major intersections, worked to ease traffic congestion, set up lights in some areas and worked to help free people trapped in subways and elevators. Full Story