On August 14, 2003, 50 million people across the eastern United States and Canada lost power. The outage lasted anywhere from two hours to up to four days, with hundreds of thousands of people stranded without access to major communication outlets.
Carbajal summarizes the causes and immediate impact of the Blackout of 2003, including its major fiscal implications and resulting 90 fatalities. The author emphasizes how poorly maintained administrative systems and ill-prepared operators later resulted in the introduction of comprehensive energy policies to prevent similar blackouts in the future.