24 Worst Cities to Be in When the Power Grid Goes

Many of us have seen the news stories warning that foreign adversaries might be scouting America’s infrastructure for an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack that would cripple the power grid. Or perhaps you recently watched Leave the World Behind on Netflix and have a feeling that chaos could be coming.

If there is ever a catastrophic event affecting the US power grid, you might want to avoid being in these cities if possible.

1. New York, NY

Alicia Keys once sang New York is a “concrete jungle where dreams are made of,” a pretty spot-on way to describe the Big Apple. Yet, New York City’s 1977 blackout proved that it’s also a city where nightmares are “made of.”

Over two powerless days, the city devolved into looting, rioting, arson, and other Lord of the Flies-like behavior. Another blackout in 2003 left New Yorkers stranded in elevators and underground, yet somehow did not dissuade New Yorkers from living in rat-sized quarters with 8.3 million strangers.

2. San Francisco, CA

San Francisco has a few notable features that would make a blackout a nightmare. It’s a major city, meaning gardens, livestock, and other sustainable food sources are few and far between. There are also the lunatics, which are abundant. Then there are the hills, which make traveling through the city (to shelter, food, or elsewhere) tiresome.

Interstate 280 and other roads leading south will undoubtedly become clogged quickly. It’s best to steer clear of San Francisco before the blackout hits.

3. Chicago, IL

Having an exit plan will be key if and when the power goes out in Chicago. Whether you have an uncle who lives off the grid in the country, a family member in the suburbs who keeps a year’s worth of storable food in the basement, or you simply don’t want to be in a densely populated city when panic sets in, being able to leave is paramount.

Chicago ranks as the city with the worst traffic in the United States, even when cars have plenty of gas. When the roads become clogged by broken-down vehicles, and everyone is trying to flee, you may find yourself stuck in Chi-Town. If you’ve seen the music videos from local Chicago rappers, you don’t exactly get a “trust your neighbor” type of vibe.

4. Monroe, LA

When the lights go out, your odds of survival may come down to who is around you. You want selfless, trustworthy people surrounding you in the case of an emergency. Monroe, LA, has the highest cost of crime per capita, meaning many in Monroe would not think twice about smashing your window and stealing your stash of Twinkies, canned chili, and AA batteries.

If you lose those, you’re really in trouble.

5. Petersburg, VA

Ranked the city with the second most costly crime per capita, Petersburg is also a city with far too many people you can’t trust.

Because trust is perhaps the most valuable commodity in a blackout situation, you should be anywhere but Petersburg (or any other city on this list) when everything goes dark.

6. Harrisburg, PA

Realtor.com deems Harrisburg, PA’s bridges as “in need of serious repair” and its roads as similarly porous. Branded as the city with the worst infrastructure in the United States, Harrisburg’s roadways could prove a perilous gauntlet for those fleeing to a more rural setting.

You may have to contend with mobs trying to overtake your well-fueled vehicle. Why compete with potholes and narrow bridges, too?

7. Jackson, MS

Disrespected (accurately) by Realtor.com as the American city with the second worst infrastructure, Jackson, MS, is crumbling like month-old cornbread. You might not even be able to fill up water jugs for the trip out of Jackson, considering that 150,000 Jacksonians went without water for longer than they should have in 2023.

If you are stuck in Jackson when the normalcy of life gives way to widespread desperation, you’re remaining in a city with its fair share of safety concerns.

8. Houston, TX

Large metroplexes will be no-fun zones if any catastrophe destabilizes the United States. More mouths and hands competing for finite resources means brutish tactics are inevitable.

Getting out of Houston will be near impossible, too, as it is one of the most congested cities in America.

9. Camden, NJ

Crime in Camden, NJ, was once so rampant that the city installed a high-tech surveillance system as a last-ditch effort to calm things down. Camden’s lawbreakers are held in check, at least in part, by a technological network that requires electricity.

If the electricity goes down for a prolonged period, Camden becomes even more dangerous than it currently is.

10. Los Angeles, CA

More than 3.8 million people call Los Angeles home, and they’re often locked in traffic even when the infrastructure is up and running. A bit of rain has been known to throw LA’s roadways into chaos.

Imagine what will happen when influencers can’t access their social media, and it becomes clear that the grid is down. Getting out of the city will be one of many problems Angelenos will have to confront if it hits the fan.

11. Austin, TX

There are some benefits to the 33% increase in Austin’s population between 2010 and 2020 and the continuing population explosion in Texas’s weirdest city. Property values have increased, Austin has gotten some new comedy clubs, and the city is as vibrant as ever.

However, a city with a massive influx of residents from all over the map with little in common can also be a recipe for disaster. If locals think Sixth Street is a nightmare on a normal Saturday night, wait until they see it when credit card swipers don’t work. Lawlessness will ensue.

12. Glasgow, MT

Glasgow, Mont., is about as remote as American cities get. Located nearly five hours from the nearest city, Glasgow is home to residents who know a thing or ten about self-reliance.

Even so, the prospect of being unable to call for help or fuel their vehicles from electricity-powered pumps is even more daunting in America’s most remote locale.

13. Philadelphia, PA

Specifically, you want to be far away from the Kensington neighborhood if society’s safeguards ever crumble. Honestly, though, it might take a while for the residents of Kensington to realize the power had gone out, as the neighborhood is something of its own universe.

Still, plenty of desperate characters in Kensington have little regard for human life, so it’s best to get out of Philly altogether.

14. Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., is a bad place to be in an emergency scenario for several reasons. For one, it is the most likely target if the grid’s collapse is due to some kind of attack. Secondly, it’s a concentrated urban center where riots will almost certainly break out quickly.

Thirdly, you can be certain that you won’t be a high-priority evacuee in a city populated by many of America’s most powerful residents.

15. New Orleans, LA

The cracks at the societal level have become impossible to ignore in New Orleans. Though it’s still the city with the best Po’boys and gumbo, it’s also a city where infrastructural failure has proven catastrophic in the past. Some have described the power supply to the city’s essential drainage system as “alarming,” so a prolonged power outage could make New Orleans an exceptionally drenched city.

Plus, the Crescent City is no stranger to serious crime, making it a no-go zone in times of widespread panic.

16. Boston, MA

Though Boston embodies the fighting spirit that incited the American Revolution, you don’t want to see the kind of fighting spirit that will unfurl in the case of a nationwide power outage. Notoriously fiery, Bostonians are not the types you want to compete for resources against, and competition will be inevitable if a power outage leads to supply-chain breakdowns.

Plus, Boston ranked as the second-most gridlocked American city in 2022, making escape prospects grim.

17. Denver, CO

In addition to the mass of humanity that has moved into the Denver area, multiple American missile facilities lie South of the city. These high-value targets could come under attack if a grid outage is linked to foreign adversaries, and those in Denver may experience environmental danger in addition to the competition for resources.

There is no strain strong enough to inundate you from the mayhem that will unfold in Denver post-blackout.

18. Dallas-Fort Worth, TX

Those who have analyzed the most likely targets in a nuclear scenario put Dallas-Ft. Worth on the shortlist. Even if Dallas was not involved in any sort of nuclear attack, it’s a major urban area with nightmarish highways, even in peaceful times. The arteries leading into and out of Dallas would quickly become clogged, and there are few shelters of respite in a city as densely population as Big D.

19. St. Louis, MO

Though St. Louis has lost half its population in the past half-century, there are still about 300,000 people in the city. That is far more people than you will want nearby when everyone starts freaking out about their Netflix and DoorDash going caput. If you are left in St. Louis relying on cutting-edge infrastructure to keep life moving, you’re out of luck.

Broken water mains and unkempt roads will only hinder any necessary recovery effort post-blackout.

20. Seattle, WA

We have already seen the propensity for certain Seattleites to form heavily armed autonomous zones when the opportunity strikes. What are the odds that the Emerald City would see the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) part two if society descended into light-less chaos?

The odds are pretty good, despite the stink of CHAZ part one still lingering like days-old tuna in Pike Place Market.

21. Indianapolis, IN

Though the Midwest has a well-earned reputation for humble, hardworking, neighbor-loving residents, Indianapolis is not all peaches and rainbows. Indy loomed among the top ten most homicidal American cities in 2023. The city has seen a spate of violence since 2020.

Furthermore, the inability to use electric heating sources in the winter could prove fatal.

22. Minneapolis, MN

Minneapolis was the epicenter of Black Lives Matter riots in 2020, and the city has not yet fully recovered. In fact, despite official reports about falling crime, crimes like aggravated assault and carjacking have continued to rise.

By many accounts, there is still an unease in Minneapolis that could be equivalent to a fuse quietly burning toward the powder keg.

23. Memphis, TN

Memphis had the most homicides per capita in 2023. While this list does not simply detail “the most dangerous cities” in the States, you’d be crazy not to consider crime rates when determining where to avoid before a blackout happens.

24. Chattanooga, TN

Chattanooga ranked as the second-worst-run city in the United States based on an amalgamation of data. When life suddenly stops, and you turn to local officials to provide order and assurance, you better hope those officials don’t report to work at Chattanooga City Hall.