In the event of a power outage like Spain.......

mmmmikey

dunstonh said:

MattMattMattUK said:

MouldyOldDough said:

Scary then?

Not really, a few hours, maybe half a day without gas or electricity is perfectly survivable without any real issues.

Indeed it is.  In rural areas, it is not uncommon to suffer 6-12 power cuts a year and have 6-12 hours of no electricity.   It is partly why so many rural properties still have woodburners and AGAs

dunstonh said:

MattMattMattUK said:

MouldyOldDough said:

Scary then?

Not really, a few hours, maybe half a day without gas or electricity is perfectly survivable without any real issues.

Indeed it is.  In rural areas, it is not uncommon to suffer 6-12 power cuts a year and have 6-12 hours of no electricity.   It is partly why so many rural properties still have woodburners and AGAs

Yes indeed. The reason this is such a big news story is because so many people are effected, not because the impact on the vast majority of people is particularly significant. I think part of the reason this raises concern for a lot of people is because they have never actually experienced a power outage because we have a much more resilient power network than many other countries. Both my brothers that live in the US have backup generators and that is very common over there. 

Hopefully the coverage this gets will prompt people to make sure they have a torch, etc.

cbsexec

That’s why I have a gas hob, electric oven and a wood burner.   I have coped with no electric for three days but it is more of a pain to have no water for a day !   

mmmmikey

cbsexec said:

That’s why I have a gas hob, electric oven and a wood burner.   I have coped with no electric for three days but it is more of a pain to have no water for a day !   

An excellent point in my view, interruption to the water supply is a much more challenging issue than interruption to energy, and a harder one to make provision for at a personal level. 

HillStreetBlues

mmmmikey said:

cbsexec said:

That’s why I have a gas hob, electric oven and a wood burner.   I have coped with no electric for three days but it is more of a pain to have no water for a day !   

An excellent point in my view, interruption to the water supply is a much more challenging issue than interruption to energy, and a harder one to make provision for at a personal level. 

A few bottles of water, packets of wipes and a spade.

mmmmikey

HillStreetBlues said:

mmmmikey said:

cbsexec said:

That’s why I have a gas hob, electric oven and a wood burner.   I have coped with no electric for three days but it is more of a pain to have no water for a day !   

An excellent point in my view, interruption to the water supply is a much more challenging issue than interruption to energy, and a harder one to make provision for at a personal level. 

A few bottles of water, packets of wipes and a spade.

works for me but wouldn't want to go to an urban park by a block of flats the next day....

Spoonie_Turtle

HillStreetBlues said:

mmmmikey said:

cbsexec said:

That’s why I have a gas hob, electric oven and a wood burner.   I have coped with no electric for three days but it is more of a pain to have no water for a day !   

An excellent point in my view, interruption to the water supply is a much more challenging issue than interruption to energy, and a harder one to make provision for at a personal level. 

A few bottles of water, packets of wipes and a spade*.

*and a suitable outdoor space.

I drink 5-6l a day … !  And that's without any ablutions.

(Edit: although to be fair, most of the people who are most dependent on infrastructure know we're stuffed in the event of a major emergency or significant infrastructure failing.)

Sea_Shell

mmmmikey said:

cbsexec said:

That’s why I have a gas hob, electric oven and a wood burner.   I have coped with no electric for three days but it is more of a pain to have no water for a day !   

An excellent point in my view, interruption to the water supply is a much more challenging issue than interruption to energy, and a harder one to make provision for at a personal level. 

One reason I'm glad that we still have a header tank in the loft...and a gas hob/fire.

It might need boiling before you drink it, but there's a good few litres up there.

Silvertabby

Am I the only one thinking of the people stuck in lifts?  Or is that just down to my (minor) claustrophobia ?

MouldyOldDough

Silvertabby said:

Am I the only one thinking of the people stuck in lifts?  Or is that just down to my (minor) claustrophobia ?

Or on the underground.... Between stations 
I don't know which would be worse 

mmmmikey

I'm not sure what the situation is in Spain but in the UK the norm is for critical infrastructure to have backup generators. That's not to say it's foolproof of course, I'd just caution about people scaring themselves silly over this.

It's a good idea, in my view, for everyone to be prepared, to use the old Boy Scouts motto. It used to be the norm for every household to have a packet of candles and/or torch at the ready and so on, but over the years power cuts have become less frequent and the need/benefit for this kind of simple precaution has gone out of people's minds. No need to go to internet extremes and ensure you are armed and ready to protect yourself against the starving masses who have just heard you have the only can of baked beans in the neighborhood. But a good idea to make sure you have a torch, etc.

And better still have a camping stove at the ready so you can do the British thing and have a nice cup of tea (whilst you smile inwardly to yourself as you watch those around you panic).