New Orleans, Louisiana, fell into darkness on May 26 after operators were pushed to a “last resort” measure to prevent a larger crisis.
The totally unprotected and unsustainable nature of the U.S. energy grid is an ongoing area of research for our experts at TMM. As you may have read in our prior reportage, the threats posed against our grid are myriad in nature, stemming from our cosmos, terrorism, and out-of-date equipment.
From Energy Reporter Audrey Streb at Daily Caller News Foundation:
New Orleans was plunged into darkness on Sunday afternoon when the region’s grid operator cut off power to reduce usage, a “last resort” measure to prevent a large-scale blackout, according to Nola.com, a local news outlet.
The Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), a major electrical grid operator, directed the energy company Entergy to reduce power with only three minutes’ notice to prevent a blackout, affecting nearly 100,000 customers, according to Nola.com. Power was fully restored after several hours, though concerns about the power grid’s reliability remain as President Donald Trump’s administration, energy policy experts and multiple North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) reports have signaled that MISO is at an elevated risk for blackouts due in part to phasing out coal-fired power plants.
“The forced outages were directed by MISO as a last resort, and done in order to prevent a more extensive, prolonged power outage that could severely affect the reliability of the power grid,” Entergy said in a Sunday statement.
“How does this happen?” New Orleans City Council member Joe Giarrusso told Nola.com. “There are lots of questions that need answering.”
Giarrusso and fellow New Orleans City Council member Helena Moreno said MISO warned Entergy of the outage just three minutes before turning off the power, though the reason for the short notice was unclear, according to Nola.com. The blackouts affected approximately 100,000 customers in and around New Orleans, according to 4WWL, a local CBS affiliate.
Louisiana Public Service Commissioner Davante Lewis, whose district includes New Orleans, said that one Entergy generator was offline for scheduled maintenance when a second generator supplying the region also failed, the outlet reported. Lewis noted that the power demand exceeded projections at the time and added that he was unsure as to whether the second generator was operated by Entergy or Cleco.
Two days before the blackouts, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright ordered MISO to ensure that the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant in West Olive, Michigan, continues to operate in order to prevent potential capacity shortages that could cause power outages.
“This administration will not sit back and allow dangerous energy subtraction policies threaten the resiliency of our grid and raise electricity prices on American families,” Wright said Friday. “With President Trump’s leadership, the Energy Department is hard at work securing the American people access to affordable, reliable, and secure energy that powers their lives regardless of whether the wind is blowing, or the sun is shining.”
The MISO grid powers portions of 15 Midwestern states and has reduced its reliance on readily available energy sources such as gas, coal or nuclear power, opting instead to pursue solar and wind resources to meet demand. This exchange is a driving factor of its potential risk, according to NERC. Click here to read the rest of DCNF’s reportage.
Energy Threats Looming?
On April 28, 2025, a still-unknown incident caused the entirety of Europe’s Iberian Peninsula to crash into darkness. Any device not powered by batteries was rendered useless, transport systems were immobile, stranding countless people across the continent. It was described as the “blackout of the century” by Space.com, and may have been caused by an still-impending threat from our cosmos: solar storms.
Somewhat bizarrely, almost a year to-the-day prior, the U.S. conducted its first ever space weather simulation exercise, the details of which were released in mid-April 2025. Things didn’t go well. (FULL STORY: US ‘Unprepared’ For Major Solar Storm, Exercise Reveals)
Any terrorist wishing to do serious damage to America’s grid can also target our power substations, as well as using EMF devices, according to the Daily Caller.
“Grid failure is a real and imminent threat, a devastatingly deadly occurrence leading to life-threatening shortages of heat, food, and water. If protective measures are not taken, we will experience catastrophic failures leaving citizens in states of starvation, death, destruction, and darkness for months,” reads the description for “Grid Down, Power Up”, a documentary detailing the core vulnerabilities in our grid and their solutions.
As we can see from NOLA, one of the biggest threats to our energy grid are repeated, probably mitigatable issues.
TMM Analysis
Telling your local, state, and federally elected officials that your vote depends on them fixing our failing and vulnerable energy grid is your right as an American. Did you know that if just 10 people write to their elected officials on one issue, that official has to take action.
“If even just eight people write me a letter on the same issue, I know I have a crisis on my hands,” one official once told us at TMM. That’s why we work with Million Voices to streamline the process of sending letters to your elected officials on the issue that matter to you. Click here to learn more.
