Lights Have Never Gone Out At Raley Field
WEST SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - First it was Candlestick Park during a 49ers home game last season, and then lightning struck twice on the NFL's biggest stage, the Superdome during the Super Bowl on Sunday night.
Lights out at any sporting event could really have fans crying foul. In its 13 years, the power has never shut off at Raley Field, and if they needed to they would call the game and restart the next day. But at the Superdome for the Super Bowl, there's no chance of a replay.
You could feel the electricity of the Super Bowl until you couldn't see it - lights out at the flashiest sporting event of the year.
The crash was no cause for chaos, just 34 long minutes of millions waiting while electricians scrambled. Our CBS13 crew captured some behind-the-scenes footage.
Zak Basch showed us the lighting control system at Raley Field.
"Obviously the actual power outage at Raley Field is out of our control, but we do have a system in place for if the lights were to go out. We have a backup generator system that'll keep the lights on, keep the PA system on," he said.
If power goes down on the field, the generator fires up, providing just enough power for emergency lights.
"We do try to be proactive with this stuff," he said. "We do have plans in place."
The Super Bowl outage happened minutes after Beyonce's performance. That brings new meaning to showstopper.
Her husband jay-z tweeted: "Lights out!!! Any questions?"
"It's crazy," one 49ers fan said during the outage. "I mean who would have thought being at a world-class event like this we'd suddenly have a full power outage. Maybe it's an omen that the 49ers are going to take the game after all."
Once the power came back on, so were the 49ers. But the Ravens eventually rejoiced with a win, and so did the city of New Orleans, saying their half-hour letdown didn't ruin the day.
