Twins born during 1977 NYC blackout look back at history

NEW YORK - In July 1977, a massive blackout turned out the lights in most of New York City.

Massive blackout turns out the lights in most of New York City in July 1977.

But just because everything was dark didn't mean life stopped, least of all for Olga Rosenberg and her daughters, Lori and Gail.

Lori and Gail, who are twins, were born during the 1977 blackout at the time, FOX 5 NY interviewed their parents at the hospital. Now, 45 years later, FOX 5 NY stopped by again to let the family view their part of a piece of history.

At the time of the blackout, Olga and her husband Alan Rosenberg lived in Belle Harbor, Queens at the time.

When Olga went into labor at about midnight, they rushed into the city to Mount Sinai Hospital in East Harlem. But the trip wasn't easy.

"Police were just chasing us away," Olga said during the 1977 interview. "They didn't believe us."

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Police rerouted them over the Brooklyn Bridge.

"The ramp that I was supposed to get off on, the signs were dark, and I missed the ramp and I wound up in Chinatown, lost!" Alan Rosenberg said in 1977. "But I eventually found the FDR and once I found it, made it up here."

Alan Rosenberg feeds one of his twins who was born during the 1977 NYC blackout.

"It was so scary because my husband couldn't see anything. Imagine driving with no light.  All the city dark," Olga said today, looking back on the original interview. 

They made it to the hospital with no time to spare. 

"Just in time I made it," Olga said. "The doctor was there and they came out like that!"

There was just a single emergency light in the delivery room, and in an even bigger shock, the Rosenbergs did not know they were having twins.

"The doctor told me I think there's another one. I said what are you talking about.  He said there's another one there," Olga said. "I said well my husband, I'm not ready for it.  My husband just built an extra room for one baby."

"To have footage going back 45 years of the day, minutes after you were born. It's pretty wild!" Lori said.

Olga Rosenberg feeds one of the twins born during the blackout of 1977.

Now, Lori and Gail are both married. Each of them has two children and they, along with their parents, live in the city.

One kicker in all of this is that Alan worked for ConEd at the time of the blackout and had to go to work.

"It was like yesterday that I had them and look at them now all grown up having children, grandchildren. I'm a great grandma," Olga said.

Channel 5 did a news report on the twins being born back in 1977.