Power Back at SUNY Purchase After Lengthy Blackout

UPdated 11:20 a.m. tuesday

The lights are back on at SUNY Purchase after a nearly 17-hour blackout cancelled several classes and left thousands of students in the dark Monday night.

The campus lost power at 1:12 p.m. Monday afternoon, according to Con Edison spokesperson Allan Drury, and was restored at 6 a.m. Tuesday. The blackout is believed to have affected the entire campus.

Dining halls were opened until 7 p.m. Monday and the school brought in emergency lighting for walkways and public spaces on the campus overnight.

There was no heat or power in many of the campus' living areas throughout the night, but there were no incidents reported during the blackout.

"The RA's (resident assistants) were very involved and very active with the students," said Geraldine Sanderson, Purchase's media relations director.

Tuesday classes didn't start until 10:30 a.m. and the school's main dining hall opened at 10 a.m. The campus' administration building will be closed Tuesday, along with a child care center. Most other offices opened by 10:30 a.m.

All lectures and events scheduled at the school moving forward will go on as scheduled, Sanderson said.

The blackout was caused by two electrical feeders to the campus that opened automatically. Exactly what caused the feeders to open, and automatically shut down, is under investigation, said Drury.

The outage did not affect surrounding neighborhoods.

SUNY Purchase started classes two hours late Tuesday as the campus dealt with the affects of Monday's power outage, according to an emergency hotline established for students.

Power was restored at about 6 a.m. Tuesday after the majority of the campus was without power for nearly 17 hours.

The campus lost power at 1:12 p.m. Monday afternoon, according to Con Edison spokesperson Allan Drury, and was restored at 6 a.m. Tuesday. The blackout is believed to have affected the entire campus.

Tuesday classes didn't start until 10:30 a.m. and the school's main dining hall opened at 10 a.m. The campus' main administration building will be closed Tuesday, along with a child care center. Most other offices will open by 10:30 a.m., according to the student hotline.

Drury said the blackout was caused by two electrical feeders to the campus that opened automatically. Exactly what caused the feeders to open, and automatically shut down, is under investigation.

The outage did not affect surrounding neighborhoods.

The SUNY Purchase campus has been without power since 12 p.m. Monday because of problems with two main electric lines into the campus, a school spokesperson said Monday.

Con Edison is working on the problem, but has not provided the school with an estimated restoration time. A Con Edison spokesperson said Monday evening that power will likely remain out until at least early Tuesday morning.

The blackout is affecting the entire campus.

Evening classes are cancelled on Monday and students are being urged to call an emergency line for updates on tomorrow's schedule.

The emergency number is 914-251-7500.

Con Edison is not reporting any outages in the surrounding area at this time. The cause for the blackout is unknown, the Con Ed spokesperson said, and will not be determined until the problem area is investigated.