Essential Preparation can Save Lives and Property

Neighborly Network:  How vulnerable were you in our recent power outage? Was it because of your age, disability, physical limitation, living alone, or because you were unprepared that you felt vulnerable?  

To those in the Intermountain West: Were you suddenly, starkly aware that you were ill-prepared for the sustained loss of power and unseasonably cold temps?  Did your home/yard sustain damage?  Were you dependent upon others near-by?  

Avoid the Pain & Inconvenience of Power Outages

While You and I can’t prevent sustained electrical outages, we can Prepare to limit our pain/Inconvenience the next time it happens. 

For the most part, the three days my household was w/o power were not extremely “painful” because of preparation. This emergency was my opportunity to test gear and know-how and see if I could stand up to this challenge with my physical limitations.  I’m including my Lessons Learned in the topics below.   

Sensible Preparation and Response

Refrigeration:  We kept fridge and freezers closed to conserve cold.  I waited too long to save many refrigerator items, (foodsafety.gov says 4 hours) but acted quickly enough (48 hours) to save frozen meats/fish, etc., with bags of ice in well-insulated coolers.  This was a high stress item for me.  I’ll do better next time.  

I now keep 10 bags of ice in my freezer units, along with pre-frozen packs, that I can transfer to coolers early enough to save refrigerator items as well as frozen food.  

Hurricane Force Winds: Some Without Power for a Week

Has your usual experience with electrical outages been like mine – power is restored within minutes or a few hours at most.  Rarely power interruptions last into the next day.  

Who could have predicted an Arctic cold front hitting Utah, Idaho and Wyoming at the end of a very hot Summer?  Especially one that brought not only early winterish temps but sustained high winds, some of hurricane force surging to 112 miles per hour? 

Things That I Learned from Hurricane Sandy -- A Heads Up For All of Us!

by Frantz Ostmann on Saturday, November 17, 2012 at 7:13am 

1. The excitement and coolness wear off around day 3.
2. You are never really prepared to go weeks without power, heat, water etc. Never!
3. Yes it can happen to you.
4. Just because your generator runs like a top, does not mean its producing electricity.
5. If you do not have water stored up you are in trouble.  A couple of cases of bottled water is “NOT” water storage.
6. You should have as much fuel as water:   a. Propane,     b. Gas,      c. Kerosene,      d. Firewood,      e. Firestarter, (kindling, paper, etc.)
7. Even the smallest little thing that you get from the store should be stocked up. (spark plug for the generator, BBQ lighter, etc.)

Added Observations Regarding Hurricane Sandy

by Amie Ostmann

1. Store a lot of ‘mix-ins’ to help flavor your stored water.  
2. Being without running water was more inconvenient than having no power.  
3. Before-hand we stored milk jugs filled with water, ¾ full, and put in the freezer.  When we had no power, we put the jugs, a couple at a time, into the fridge to keep food cold.  When they melted, we used for drinking.  
4. I wished I had more candles.
5. 10-hour candles were awesome.  
6. Candles give a broader light than a flashlight.  
7. We had one lantern; it was better than the candles.  I wished for more.

Food Safety During Power Outages

Power can suddenly go out because of severe storms, heat waves causing high or spiked usage, man-caused events.  It is inconvenient and frustrating at best, and brutal at worst.  

Prolonged power outages can be dangerous.  For one thing, when we lose power we lose refrigeration.  Food safety becomes an issue.  

Coping with Power Outages

Electrical Equipment

• Turn off and unplug all unnecessary electrical equipment, including sensitive electronics. 
• Turn off or disconnect any appliances (like stoves), equipment or electronics you were using when the power went out. When power comes back on, surges or spikes can damage equipment.