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The Latest: Con Ed: Demand didn't cause power problem

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on a power outage in New York City (all times local):

3:15 p.m.

Con Ed says a power outage that left parts of Manhattan in the dark for several hours didn't have anything to do with demand on the electrical grid.

Con Ed President Tim Cawley says the cause of the Saturday night outage is still under investigation.

The blackout affected thousands of customers for about 5 hours along a 40-block stretch that included Times Square to 72nd Street and Broadway, and spreading to Rockefeller Center.

He says the utility company is prepared for high demand, like one expected this coming week as the temperatures rise.

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11:55 a.m.

U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer is calling for a federal probe into a blackout that left thousands of people in Manhattan without power for several hours.

The New York Democrat says the Department of Energy's Office of Electricity should investigate the work being done by Con Edison to maintain and upgrade the city's power grid after the power failure on Saturday night in some of the busiest parts of Manhattan.

Schumer says the federal agency should consider the New York City blackout a national priority because any lessons learned can be applied nationally.

In a statement Sunday, Con Ed said it would be conducting "a diligent and vigorous investigation" to figure out the cause of the blackout.

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5:50 a.m.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio left the presidential campaign trail in Iowa amid a massive power outage in Manhattan.

Press secretary Freddi Goldstein tweeted just before 10 p.m. Saturday that de Blasio was on his way back to New York City.

Con Edison officials say a substation caused the power failure that began at 6:47 p.m. and affected 73,000 customers for more than three hours in midtown Manhattan and the Upper West Side.

De Blasio tweeted emergency management updates and lauded New Yorkers for responding to the blackout "with that trademark NYC grit and toughness." He was in Waterloo, Iowa, at the time of the blackout, appearing alongside other presidential candidates at a "Passport to Victory" fundraiser.

He was scheduled to appear at the Progress Iowa Corn Feed on Sunday.

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5:25 a.m.

A massive power outage on a hot Saturday night packed the streets of Manhattan with people using cellphones as flashlights amid bumper-to-bumper traffic and a cacophony of sirens and honks.

Con Edison officials say a substation caused the power failure at 6:47 p.m., affecting 73,000 customers for more than three hours along a 30-block stretch from Times Square to 72nd Street and Broadway, and spreading to Rockefeller Center. An investigation will determine the exact cause of the blackout, which New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called "unacceptable."

The energy utility said power was restored to customers and businesses in midtown Manhattan and the Upper West Side was restored by about midnight.

The pre-sunset outage shut down restaurants and Broadway shows and had people scrambling outside in search of waning daylight.