Grand Central terminal power outage forces commuters into darkness; video shows people using phone lights to navigate

A massive blackout struck Grand Central Terminal in New York City on Thursday evening, September 25, plunging portions of the iconic transit hub into darkness for several minutes. The outage began around 8:28 p.m. ET, with backup generators activating to restore power within roughly 30 minutes, according to multiple news sources quoting MTA officials. Power returned to the upper level by around 9:00 p.m., and full restoration was completed by 9:17 p.m., the MTA confirmed.

Five Metro-North employees were temporarily trapped in elevators during the outage before firefighters rescued them, though no injuries were reported, according to the MTA and FDNY.

Trains, including the subway, Metro-North, and Long Island Rail Road, continued to operate without disruption. NYC Emergency Management confirmed on X that service was unaffected once power was restored.



MTA Communications Director Tim Minton said in a statement as quoted by New York Daily News, “The terminal experienced a drop in voltage to the feeder network that resulted in lights going out in portions of the facility.” He added that no train service was interrupted and that operations at Grand Central Madison remained unaffected throughout.

Social media users also posted videos of the blackout.


However, the exact cause of the outage remains unclear.