A brief disruption occurred at Grand Central Terminal last night when a voltage drop caused partial lighting outages in the historic station, prompting concern among commuters and a swift response from officials to restore normal operations.
According to ABC7NY, the outage began around 8:30 p.m. and lasted for less than an hour. During that time, five Metro-North Railroad employees were temporarily trapped in elevators due to the loss of power, though no injuries were reported. The lighting disruption affected parts of the terminal, altering normal visibility for commuters in the usually well-lit space.
Power was restored to the upper level of the terminal by 8:53 p.m., followed by the lower level at 9:17 p.m. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority assured the public that train service for the subway, Metro-North, and Long Island Rail Road continued without interruption during the outage, detailed in a statement obtained by NY1.
Tim Minton, a spokesperson for the MTA, highlighted that no injuries occurred and that operations at Grand Central Madison were not impacted. Emergency generators activated, and firefighters worked with MTA staff to assist those trapped in elevators. By 9:28 p.m., all rescues were complete, and passenger flow and normal activity resumed in the station.
