By Stephen Koff, Elizabeth Auster, and Susan Jaffe
Plain Dealer Reporters

WASHINGTON - Lights went off for millions of Americans and Canadians, yesterday as a power plant failure cascaded to other points on the electricity grid, leaving residents from Toronto to New York to Detroit without air conditioning, elevator service, subway rides home and sources of light.

New Yorkers, on trains stuck in tunnels and underground stations at the start of rush hour, exited with the help of flashlight wielding police officers and transit workers. Traffic cops manned intersections as office workers, some walking down dozens of flights of stairs, left work and jammed the streets.

With New Jersey commuter trains halted, throngs of New York workers poured into lower Manhattan and formed lines for the ferries that cross the Hudson River. There were reports of outages in northern New Jersey and in several Vermont towns. In Connecticut, the Metro-North railroad service was knocked out, the Associated Press reported, and lights flickered at state government buildings in Hartford.

In Albany, N.Y., several people were trapped in elevators at Empire State Plaza but most had been freed by 5 p.m., the Associated Press said.

Authorities in Washington and New York were quick, to assuage public concern:

This was not the work of terrorists. "The first thing that people should do is realize that there was no terrorism involved," New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg told a televised news conference.

Rather, news reports last night said that lightning struck a New York,power station near Niagara Falls, triggering a chain reaction of shut-downs across a geographic are that included Ottawa, Toronto, Cleveland and Detroit - but not Boston, Washington or Chicago. However, Canadian and New York authorities were in disagreement as to a lightning,strike as the cause, CNN reported.

The Perry nuclear power plant in Lake County was shut down, as were nuclear plants in New York, New Jersey and Michigan, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said.

The NRC declared all the plants to be in a safe condition and said they could use emergency diesel generators where appropriate.

President Bush, addressing reporters at a San Diego hotel during a two-day California trip, said that "slowly but surely we're coping with this massive, national problem!"

"I have been working with federal officials to make sure the respon~e to this situation was quick and thorough, and I believe it has been", Bush said.

Sen. Pete Domenici, chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, use the occasion of the blackout to urge passage of a comprehensive national energy policy that includes "nuclear energy and practical renewable sources."

The breakdown of the power grid occurred as temperatures across the East Coast soared, prompting officials to urge residents to take it slow and easy.

"It is very hot out there," Bloomberg said. "The water supply is safe and you should drink a lot of water!"

The blackouts began shortly after 4 p.m. EDT. Electricity began to come back in some cities by early, evening, but officials said it would take hours longer for full power to return.

"I would expect everything to be back to business tomorrow," Bloomberg said last night, though he added that some traffic lights still might not be working today. "By later on this evening, it Will be back to speculating, "Where were you when the lights went out."

After the power went out, Nick George, 21, left his office on New YorYs West Side, where he prepares resumes, and volunteered to direct traffic at a busy intersection.

"Hey, woman with the stroller," he yelled as six lanes of traffic going east and west tried to mingle with five lanes of cars, buses and fearless cab drivers headed downtown. "Hold it!"

After almost two hours of waiting, shouting and smiling to keep traffic flowing, George was not reconsidering his plans to 90 to law school when he graduates from Fordham University.

"I'm tired already and my voice is shot," he said. Elena Lentini, a Middle Eastern dancer, stopped to take George's photograph. "He's doing a good job," she said. "This looks like an emergency but it's not that serious. After 9/11, we can handle this!"

At a small nearby corner park, Max Brock; 32, was reading a newspaper. "I'm not looking forward to walking up the 42 floors to my apartment," said Brock, an investment banker who recently quit his job to do some traveling. But he observed, "There's a nice community vibe out here!"

Supermarkets and stores closed because they bald no power, including one of New Yorks usually dependable Greek coffee shops, the Flame. "In a few more hours, we'll lose more than $10,000, said manager Spiro V1ahos. Without electricity, he was losing more than just his dinner customers; he would have to throw out beef, vegetables and other food that needs refrigeration.

But as temperatures nosed close to 90 degrees, the owner of a Mister Softee ice cream truck was busy selling soft ice cream and cold drinks. He had a long line of customers, mostly office workers walking home after the subways shut down. "Business is good," he said.