Looting During the New York Blackout of 1977

During the 1977 blackout in New York, many structures were looted or destroyed. Unlike other well-known blackouts, the 1977 blackout included many acts of of violence, including arson and other acts that cause extensive property damage. Previous blackouts in the city had not resulted in such violence and many people were shocked at citizens’ reactions to the 1977 blackout. The 1977 blackout began due to the results of a lightening strike, and by the time the lights came back on, the blackout had resulted in mass looting and other crimes which caused massive damage to businesses. Some of those businesses never recovered, while others no longer wanted to run businesses in a city that had turned against them. The crimes that took place that night have been attributed to intervening factors that worked in concurrence with the blackout. At the time, there was a sense of uneasiness around the city, which was attributed to the Son of Sam murders. The economic situation was also causing stress for a lot of families that were suddenly finding themselves unable to afford the essentials. Added to those stressors was the weather of the evening, which some witnesses describe as sweltering. The time at which the blackout occurred may have also been a factor, as many business owners had already left for the day and were unable to protect their property during the 1977 blackout, as opposed to other blackouts that had begun during business hours. The 1977 blackout resulted in the arrest of over four thousand looters. In most cases, looters were attempting to steal property in order to sell it for financial gain. In fact, the blackout was only for one night and many people would have had the supplies to survive the evening without electricity. The mayhem that ensued during the blackout may have been caused by many intervening factors, but those factors did not change the result. People on the streets say that it was a dangerous and violent scenario in which everyone seemed to be out for themselves. The mob mentality added to the violence. The cost to city residents was estimated to be around three hundred million dollars. The amount of property looted has never been determined exactly, but in a few blocks, over seventy-five stores were completely looted.