Blackout in Florida

The lights went out in south Florida this afternoon as a major blackout cut power to more than 4 million customers, according to news reports. The power outage started between 1 and 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time, said local residents.

One local resident, reached by cell phone in the Overton area of Miami at 2:30 p.m., reported that the outages were "sporadic" and said he was waiting in his car at a functioning traffic light.  Meanwhile, CNN showed images of chaotic intersections where traffic lights were not working.

The city of New York and parts of the northeast corridor suffered a major blackout almost five years ago that affected 50 million people in the U.S. and Canada.  The August 14, 2003 incident prompted public interest in rebuilding the power grid and the electrical infrastructure of the U.S..  It also prompted questions about potential terrorism. 

In today's incident in Florida, officials report no information about possible terrorism.