How to Survive a Power Outage

Published August 23, 2013

| AccuWeather

On August 14, 2003, a large portion of the East Coast was suddenly and unexpectedly plunged into darkness. Although initially feared to be a terrorist attack on the nation's power grid, the outage was due to a combination of outdated power lines, summertime heat and human error. The confluence of these events caused 50 million people to lose power and became the largest blackout in North American history.

More recently, power outages due to Hurricane Sandy in 2012 left residents without electricity for weeks amidst massive flooding and storm damage. Anticipating the hurricane's landfall, store shelves were raided by harried customers searching for batteries and bottled water to complete their emergency supply kits.


Prepare now for an unexpected power outage

Stock up on essentials. Having these items already in your home will help with both severe storm preparations and unexpected blackouts. Keep these items in a designated "emergency supply kit" for easy access.

- Stock your home with several flashlights and the corresponding batteries. Flashlights are always the safer choice since candles pose the risk of accidental fires when emergency services may already be overwhelmed.

- Purchase a battery-powered radio. When access to television isn't possible, invest in a battery-powered radio to stay alert of any evacuation orders or status updates on the power outage.

- Buy a car charger for your cell phone. Since many Americans rely on cellphones in lieu of a corded landline phone, it is important to keep your cell fully charged. By purchasing a charger that attaches through your cigarette lighter or auxiliary plug (depending on the model of your vehicle); you can use your car as a supplementary power source to charge your phone. Also consider having an alternate non-corded landline phone for your home, which usually remain unaffected during power outages.

When a storm is approaching

Sometimes power outages are expected by the arrival of severe weather events such as hurricanes or heat waves. These are additional steps you can take to prepare your home for weather-related blackouts.

Keep at least ½ of a tank of gas in your car at all times. Many gas stations rely on electricity to power their pumps. While it may seem inconvenient to make more frequent stops at the gas station, if you have a near-empty tank during a power outage you may lack the fuel to travel beyond an evacuation area in case of an emergency order.



During a power outage





In case of extreme temperatures, plan on visiting locations and businesses that are likely to have generators. For instance, power outages are common during heat waves. Plan on visiting shopping malls or movie theatres to keep cool and avoid heat stroke.
