Concerns about the blackout - what supplies are needed, what measures make sense?
Created: 09/22/2022, 05:00
By: Ines Baur
Power failure, blackout - another scenario that worries people.
How you can prepare for the worst-case scenario and which power outages are among the most serious blackouts in recent years.
According to the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK for short), Germany's power supply is one of the safest in Europe.
Nevertheless: construction work, extreme weather or the simultaneous switching on of hundreds of thousands of fan heaters could also lead to long-term power failures in Germany.
A worrying scenario.
If you consider what electricity is now necessary for.
Or the other way around - if you consider what we actually no longer need electricity for.
Blackout - power grid in the stress test
According to
spiegel.de
, a power grid stress test by the federal government came to the conclusion "that crisis situations in the power system by the hour in the winter of 22/23 are very unlikely, but cannot be completely ruled out at the moment".
This was about an extreme scenario in which a quarter to half of the gas-fired power plants in southern Germany fail due to a lack of gas, while persistent low water is slowing down supplies for coal-fired power plants, French nuclear power plants are still out of order and many fan heaters are used at the same time.
Blackout - Batteries, cash and a battery operated radio
In the event of a power outage, it's good to have a flashlight handy.
But not only (symbol image).
© Marwan Naamani/dpa
In the event of a major blackout lasting several hours, things can get uncomfortable.
S-Bahn, tram and U-Bahn and certainly some long-distance trains would be paralyzed.
ATMs no longer dispense money.
Household appliances such as refrigerators and freezers fail.
Mobile phones, PCs and telephones no longer work.
It would be dark and cold in houses and apartments.
Even the water supply could be affected.
In order to prepare for a power failure, the BBK recommends preparing accordingly.
"Make sure that the batteries on your laptops, mobile phones, telephones, etc. are charged or have charged spare batteries ready," advise the experts from civil protection.
Solar-powered battery chargers or power banks could help in the event of a power failure.
They also recommend having cash on hand, as ATMs won't work if there's a power outage.
In order to be able to follow notifications from the authorities, a battery-operated radio or crank radio should be available.
Emergency backpack and food supply not only because of a power failure in the house
In an interview with the Handelsblatt
, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) advises that it makes sense to store food and drinking water for ten days at home
.
In crisis situations, citizens could stay at home to relieve emergency services and supermarkets.
The emergency backpack is an important part of private civil protection.
It should always be within reach and taken with you when you escape from the house, for example due to flooding or a fire.
Lists for the perfectly packed emergency backpack and sensible stockpiling can be viewed or downloaded free of charge from the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance.
also read
Aldi, Edeka, Lidl affected: Seven types of cheese recalled across Germany – recall extended
Ice cream recall is being expanded: customers in Germany are affected – the manufacturer is withdrawing 14 varieties from the market
Power failure - these were the five biggest blackouts worldwide
Various reasons can cause a blackout.
According to srf.ch
, the five most serious blackouts were
:
India July 2012.:
Affected: 620 million
Duration: 15 hours
Cause: Network problem
Pakistan January 2015
Affected: 140 million
Duration: 24 hours
Cause: Sabotage
USA in October 2012
Affected: 8 million
Duration: 7 days
Cause: natural event
Bangladesh in November 2014
Affected: 100 million
Duration: 12 hours
Cause: network problem
Italy September 2003
Affected: 57 million
Duration: 18 hours
Cause: Network problem
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