How a possible blackout changed Sandra Kreitner's life

Created: 11/24/2022, 2:29 p.m

By: Catherine Hauser

Sandra Kreitner is prepared for the blackout.

She wants as many people as possible to imitate her.

© Gronau

When Sandra Kreitner from Hohenpeissenberg gave her husband the novel "Blackout" by Marc Elsberg a few years ago, she had no idea how this gift would change her life.

Hohenpeissenberg – At that time, the biophysicist and chemist worked for a large pharmaceutical company.

She read the novel and became interested in the subject of blackout.

The interest has now turned into a professional activity.

Among other things, the Hohenpeissenberger tells in an interview how it came about.

How has your life changed in recent years?

It has changed completely.

I used to be employed and worked at "Hexal" in the research and development department, which then closed.

I had to reorient myself, which I was planning to do anyway.

As a mother of three small children and a husband who is very busy with his job, I wanted to work independently and less so that I could keep the school holidays free.

Originally, I wanted to become a non-medical practitioner in the field of psychotherapy.

But then the commitment to crisis prevention intervened?

I actually did the training to become a naturopath.

At the same time, I started to become active in crisis prevention.

For a while I followed two tracks, then my work in crisis prevention grew more and more.

After the topic has increasingly come into focus in recent years, I have been working full-time on crisis prevention and "blackouts" for about two years.

What are your activities in this area?

I give lectures, give workshops, advise communities, cities and districts as well as organizations and companies in critical infrastructure on how they can prepare for a crisis and a blackout.

In the meantime, there are also companies and companies that want to be advised.

This drew the media's attention to me.

I am currently giving regular interviews on the radio, for newspapers or television stations.

What I do is very varied.

But that doesn't sound like a comfortable part-time job

.

It's not.

I get so many requests that I sometimes have to push them and sometimes I have to turn them down.

There's no other way.

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Why do you think the topic of "blackouts" has become more and more important in recent years?

Because a long-lasting, large-scale power outage has become more likely during this time.

For many of the possible causes, the situation has worsened.

For example, extreme weather is on the increase, and the power grids are at their limit overall.

Since the Ukraine war began in February, there has also been an increased risk of cyber attacks and acts of sabotage on critical infrastructure.

As a result, the situation has worsened overall.

How should private individuals prepare for a possible “blackout”?

Thats is quite easy.

Every individual and every family should stock up on supplies of food, water and medicine to last 10 to 14 days.

There should also be a battery-operated radio, a flashlight, maybe a camping stove and enough hygiene items in the house or apartment.

Consideration should also be given to the needs of an infant or dependent family member.

There are lists where everything is listed.

How can companies take precautions?

In most cases, companies are concerned with contingency plans, such as maintaining emergency operations or how operations can be shut down.

You have to look carefully at what is required for the specific operation.

These are all points that need to be planned in advance.

What is important for companies that work in the field of critical infrastructure?

Companies and organizations from this field are increasingly contacting me.

I recently trained a large clinic in Baden-Württemberg.

In hospitals, one of the things that matters is that patients can be supplied with food even in the event of a crisis.

You may have to look for alternatives to the usual range of food.

In the event of a disaster, it's about the patients getting something to eat, not about fine dining.

It must also be considered whether there is a way for the staff to get into the work.

The greatest backup generator is useless if I don't have people who can come to the hospital.

Are you often lumped in with activists from the prepper scene?

Not anymore.

In the beginning it was like that.

When I started my current job, the first thing I had to do was to make it clear that it was about pensions.

Preppers are people preparing for months or years without electricity. It's not prepping when you're building up a 14-day supply.

Developments over the past few months have made it clear to most that crisis prevention concerns us all.